


In the dark

by Codango



Category: Gintama
Genre: Accidental Plot, Action & Romance, Adulthood, Eventual Sex, F/M, Flirting, Masturbation, Shinsengumi - Freeform, Slow Burn, trolling them both
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-03
Updated: 2014-09-15
Packaged: 2018-02-11 13:46:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 20,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2070489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Codango/pseuds/Codango
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kagura, 21, is tired of being on the sidelines at Yorozuya. Recently, Gin-san hasn't been letting her in on the more interesting jobs, and frankly, she'd like to be making some money of her own. Maybe it's time to follow Otae-san's path at the Snack Smile hostess club. But, as Okita Sougo says, "I’m amused to find a Yato working as a hostess. Someone who could easily reduce any man to a quivering mass of flesh and bone is content to listen to their drunken jokes? Push away their groping hands? For money? Yes, China. I am very amused.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> UPDATE: I've been thinking about the way I'm portraying Okita here. He's a little different from the complete sadist he's shown to be the majority of the time. I'm trying to bring out the Okita we saw briefly in the Mitsuba arc -- still passionate but tempered with serious depth and love. I adore that Okita.

She covered her hair with a gray scarf, breathed deeply, and, eyes sparkling with blue fire, jumped.

Kagura landed with a soft grunt on the neighboring rooftop. She glanced back at her bedroom window, curtains fluttering softly in the Yorozuya flat. And she was off, running along the rooftops of Edo on a moonless night.

That was the fantastic thing about Edo, she thought. Some people said the streets were unsafe at night, but the rooftops were fabulously empty. Of course, since she had the strength to run along rooftops, presumably she didn’t have much to worry about on the streets either.

But fighting was loud and a waste of a fine evening, unless of course the opponent was good.

Kagura slowed her pace to a quiet saunter. The red-light district tended to be better lit than the rest of Edo at this time of night, and she didn’t want to be discovered too soon.

“Ah.” A pink glow shone just beyond the next rooftop. Kagura crept to the edge on her knees, peering down to see the front doors of Snack Smile. The late-night hostesses were just showing up to work.

Kagura watched as an older woman stopped at the side door, waving the other girls to go in before her. An attractive brunette in a pink yukata, Shimura Tae casually looked up and down the street in front of the hostess club.

Kagura grinned. “She didn’t forget.”

Seeing that the coast was clear, she flung herself over the side of the building, bounced on an awning, and hopped neatly down into an alley. Kagura shook the scarf off her red hair and called, “Otae-san!” as she crossed the street.

“Kagura-chan, there you are.” Tae looked over the younger girl’s shoulder. “How did you come? Isn’t that a dead end?”

“Aaah, I got here a bit early,” Kagura lied easily. No one really needed to know about her rooftop ambles. “It didn’t feel right going in without you, so I was just waiting in the alley there.”

Tae raised an eyebrow. “You’ll have to get over that shyness if you’re going to be a hostess.”

Kagura followed her into the pink velvety luxury of the hostess club, trying not to oo and ahh at the over-the-top finery. She’d only been inside a couple times and not very recently at that. Gintoki had stopped taking her to Snack Smile when she was around 16, even on Yorozuya jobs that required it.

“Kagura-chan.”

Kagura tore her gaze from the racks of splendid yukata in the hostess’ dressing rooms to focus on Tae.

“Not that I want to discourage you,” the woman began, “but you’re sure you want to be a hostess here? I mean, in addition to your Yorozuya work?”

“Definitely!” Kagura turned back to the beautiful robes, afraid her answer had been too sharp, too quick. She let the fabric fall through her hands. “Most of our work is for the Shinsengumi now. And Gin-chan doesn’t want me go out on those jobs all the time.”

Tae joined her at the rack. “Well, he’s never exactly been a huge fan of the Shinsengumi,” she chattered brightly. “I think he sometimes tries a little too hard to protect his loved ones from things he just doesn’t like. But I suppose that makes me wonder —” Tae held out two robes “— why haven’t you tried using your skills as a Yato for the Shinsengumi?”

“The Shinsengumi doesn’t recruit women.” Kagura took the green yukata with gold chrysanthemums. “And I’m tired of not earning my way at Yorozuya.”

Tae frowned. “That’s what this is about? Making money?”

Kagura laughed, trying to make the sound carefree and bright. “Money would definitely be nice. And if I can make Gin-chan realize I can handle making my own way, well. That would be nice too.”

Tae shot the tiny redhead an appraising look. “Farbeit from me to stand between a woman and a way of making herself independent. That color will be lovely on you, by the way. Yosh!” She clapped her hands.

A slim individual with sharp blue eyes turned around at a makeup table and nodded at Kagura to come over. “Haru-san will teach you how to do your makeup,” Tae explained as she sat down at a similar table. “Leave the buns, Haru-san, they might work as a signature look.”

“You sure, Otae-san?” The cross-dressing makeup artist frowned. “They make her look kind of young.”

Tae squinted at Kagura, reconsidering. Kagura clutched the yukata to her chest. Reassuring, sisterly Otae-san was gone, and a business-like hostess was in her place. “True, and she is 21. Let’s make her look it. Haru-san, I should never doubt you.”

Haru sniffed and steered Kagura by the shoulders toward the makeup table. “I’ll remind you that you said that. Right.” Haru practically shoved Kagura onto her knees. “Let’s try a simple twist tonight, I think.”

 

* * *

 

Kagura pretended to sip her sake so she could steal a look at Tae. The brunette was laughing prettily on the other side of the couch at a rather stupid joke. _How does she do this?_ If the men weren’t old, rutting, and rude, they were young, rutting, and ignorant.

It had been two hours since she’d walked out of the dressing room, been handed her first bottle of sake, and sat down with Tae’s first clients. Getting dressed up had been fun — Haru was an expert at yukata as well as hair and makeup — but did she really have it in her heart to do this five nights a week? _So much for being strong and independent. You can’t even last your first night at a new job._

She noticed a commotion at the club’s front entrance. Guests and hostesses alike were craning their necks to get a look at an incoming party. Some were even leaving their seats to stand by the door.

“Oh, it’s nothing really.” Tae waved away her client’s question. “It’s probably just the shogun. He seems to think he has fun here. He’ll drop by about once a week.”

“The shogun?! Tae-chan, you’re not going to leave me for him, are you?”

Kagura had the maturity to stop herself from rolling her eyes. The salary man at Tae’s side was red in the face and beginning to slur.

Another pretty laugh. “Only if he requests it, Mako-chan.”

“That’s our Otae-san!” crowed another guest at the table. “Friendly to all, loyal to none!”

 _Oh god._ Kagura stood.

“Kagura-chan?”

“Ah!” She turned at Tae’s concerned tone. “We — we’re out of sake! Surely you gentlemen aren’t done drinking yet?” Kagura tried to mimic Tae’s flirty style.

“Sake!” “More sake!” Cups were raised all around the table with only a bit of sloshing here and there.

Tae joined in the applause, laughing. “Obviously! Of course, usually, we order more from the servers.” She held Kagura’s gaze meaningfully. “But tonight! These gentlemen are thirsty, Kagura-chan!”

“H-hai!” Kagura turned on her heel. _Crap. Well, whatever, this is just… part of training, right?_ She’d never had a job other than as part of Yorozuya. Getting everything right would be harder than she thought.

Only a few hostesses shot her disapproving looks as she stood at the bar with the male servers. “Three warm, please.” The bartender nodded and began arranging a tray.

“Hijikata-san, you don’t look like you’re enjoying yourself at all.”

Kagura froze. _The fuck. Really?!_ That mocking voice was too familiar. And too damn close.

“Shut up, Sougo. You don’t know what you’re talking about. I love hostess clubs.”

Kagura smirked at that. That was definitely Hijikata Toshi, Vice Commander of the Shinsengumi, and he most likely despised clubs. He could only be here because he had to be. He wasn’t even pretending to sound excited. So why —?

 _The shogun! Fuck. How many Shinsengumi are here guarding him tonight?_ Kagura bit her lip. She knew all of them, more or less. Hijikata would have no reason to tell Gintoki or Shinpachi if he saw her — wouldn’t think anything of it, most likely. But Okita Sougo… he may or may not mention it, but he certainly would if he knew she didn’t want him to.

_Fuck._

The bartender pushed the warm tray toward her. _Well. Well, he probably hasn’t seen me yet._ She leaned over the bar. “So, I’m new here.” A strategic giggle. “Well, obviously. And I just realized I shouldn’t be requesting drinks at the bar. Can you get a server to take this to Otae-san’s table?”

The bartender looked mildly annoyed, but Kagura hadn’t been watching Tae all night long for nothing. She flashed him a brilliant smile, and the man turned pink. “Rei-san!” he bellowed. “For Otae-san’s table, right away!”

Kagura blinked at the noise. A server bustled up next to her and swept the tray up smoothly. “Right away!” he repeated loudly.

 _So much for a discreet exit_. It would be awkward, but she could probably keep her back to the shogun’s table until she made it back to the dressing room. And then… she’d figure out some other way to not have Gintoki find out what she was up to on her first goddamn night of work.

“Oi, Sougo, where do you think you’re going?” Hijikata sounded annoyed.

Two steps away from the bar, Kagura’s steps faltered, but she kept walking.

“Investigating something, Vice-Chief.” _GodDAMMIT._

“Eh? There’s nothing to investigate. The shogun just ordered a third bottle.” No doubt Hijikata didn’t want to be solely responsible for keeping Edo’s top military brass out of trouble.

 _How fast can I walk without… walking fast, exactly?_ She was almost at the dressing room. Her hand reached for the latch.

“Chiiiiinnna.”

She yelped at the smooth voice at her ear, then turned and glared.

Okita Sougo was leaning against the wall, police uniform perfectly pressed and smelling faintly of sake.

“I really hope you get better with alcohol and not worse,” she said coldly.

Okita’s maroon-colored eyes widened before he settled into his usual grin. “Better? In what way?” He scanned her yukata with interest. “The reason I ask is — well. If you’re working here these days —”

She shoved him away from the door and turned the latch. “Yes, well, I’m very busy because, you know, working.”

But he slipped into the dressing room after her with a laugh. “China, what’s going on? There’s no way this is a Yorozuya job, is it? Or is your boss branching out these days?”

“You can’t come in here,” she bit out. She glanced around. They were alone, except for — _ah. Haru. Good enough._ The makeup artist had paused while cleaning his brushes to gape at the sandy-haired young officer. “Haru-san eats anyone who isn’t staff.”

Haru huffed, then favored Okita with a special smile. “She exaggerates. That’s only by special request.”

Okita laughed again. “Okay. Let’s say I leave you alone in here. I can request you as a hostess, right? I could probably even charge it to the shogun.”

“Why the hell would you do that? And I’m in training, actually, so no, you can’t.”

“Well, technically, a patron may request whomever,” Haru cut in. “Management never says no.”

“H-Haru!” Kagura whined.

“Right.” Okita opened the door. The perfumed air of the club wafted inside the dressing room. “See you in a minute, China.”

“HARU.” Kagura rounded on her betrayer the moment the door shut. “I came in here expressly to get _rid_ of that guy!”

“Oh, honey, have you got a lot to learn.” Haru was at her side, tucking in a strand of hair here, dabbing scented oil there. “You don’t get rid of guys like that. He's connected to the shogun? You teach them that there’s nothing out there half as good as you, and then you bleed them dry.”

“That’s — really brutal of you. What do you when they’re dry?”

“Yes, that can be a bit tricky.” Haru tutted, tightening her obi. “Ignoring them doesn’t always do the trick. And that one looks like he’d be tough to ignore.” He sighed, a suspiciously happy sound.

“Haru.” The gears turned in Kagura’s brain. “What if you went out there and sat with the captain? I’m sure he’d just love to —”

“Kagura-chan.” Haru fixed her with a stern eye. “It’s not that I haven’t or can’t or won’t. But I prefer to be with men who prefer to be with me. That man —” he gestured to the door “— probably wouldn’t even hear me introduce myself.”

He poked her shoulder to get her to turn once, then pretty much shoved her into the club. “Now if you don’t empty his wallet by the time he leaves tonight, we may have to reevaluate your skill for this job.”

Kagura found herself making outraged noises at a closed door.

The night manager fluttered up to her almost instantly. “Ah, Kagura-san! What an unprecedented surprise! There’s been a request —”

She turned. Behind the manager’s shoulder, Okita gave her a small salute from an empty booth. No other guests, no other hostesses.

Just his usual smirk and a warm bottle of sake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [@codango on Tumblr](http://codango.tumblr.com/)


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You. You complete and utter ass.” She hissed. Hell no, she wasn’t going to wipe her eyes because she wasn’t goddamn crying, she wasn’t. Kagura leaned over and slapped her palm hard on the table next to Okita’s drink. She kept her voice low and harsh to keep it from shaking. “I am going to work hard here. And I’m going to make my own money. So that when Gin-chan and Shinpachi decide they really don’t need me anymore, I will have something to fall back on other than killing people. Because you’re right.” She grinned, an evil doll’s smile. “I’m very good at that. And people want to pay me to do it. Do you want that to happen, Shinsengumi captain? Feeling bored lately?”

_Okay. You’re a professional now. Just treat him like any other client._

Kagura eased herself into the booth, taking a seat not too close, not too far. “Close enough to smell perfume,” Tae had said.

“Having an amusing night, Captain?” she asked, reaching for the sake to pour them each a cup.

Okita’s eyebrows went up. “Captain? You’re finally impressed by my rank?”

She took a sip to keep from responding. Or smashing his head back against the bench.

“To answer your question, yes. I’m amused to find a Yato working as a hostess.” Bemusement was plain on his face. “Someone who could easily reduce any man to a quivering mass of flesh and bone is content to listen to their drunken jokes? Push away their groping hands? For money? Yes, China.” Okita leaned forward. “I am very amused.”

Her smile was brittle with none of Tae’s charm. “I tried converting those skills into money once before. There’s no future in it.”

“So that’s really it then?” He studied her closely, and she found herself pressing back into the cushions. “You’re doing this strictly for the money?”

Kagura gripped her cup. She would be a goddamned lady tonight. “We’ve talked so much about me this evening, Captain. Let’s talk about you. Are you and the shogun enjoying yourselves tonight?”

“What I can’t understand,” Okita continued, “is how you talked Gin-san into being okay with this. I mean, Otae-san definitely sets a brilliant example here, but everyone knows you’re practically his daughter —”

Kagura would have sworn her expression hadn’t changed, but evidently the Shinsengumi captain had seen something. “Oh no.” His worst grin spread slowly across his face. “He doesn’t know. Of course he doesn’t know. He’d be here right now if he knew —”

“If you tell him, I’ll kill you.” Kagura closed her eyes. “Pardon. I didn’t mean that.” She glared at him. “If you tell anyone, I’ll break your ribs.”

“Ah.” Okita was obviously trying very hard to frown. “Well, that’s a much more… realistic threat. Really? I can’t tell anyone? But you’re working in the middle of Edo. Otae-san’s made this a very popular spot. Hell, even Gin-san comes in when he has the spare cash. How are you planning on making this work?”

“I wouldn’t dream of asking a government official to understand, Captain.”

He propped his chin in his hands. “Try me. Everyone tells me I’m very smart.”

“Forgive me if I’m not falling over myself to confide in the Shinsengumi.” _If you were any kind of a gentleman at all, you’d let me change the subject, you jerk._

Okita raised an eyebrow. “You in trouble?”

“No! No.” Kagura smiled brightly. “Nothing like that. This —” she  waved at the glittering club “— is an experiment. To see how well I can work at a trade that doesn’t require me to, as you say, reduce a man to a quivering mass of flesh, or whatever delightful phrase you used.”

“So. An experiment to see how long a Yato can pretend to be a human being?”

Kagura’s jaw went slack. She… she’d definitely had more sake than she was used to tonight. That’s why her eyes were stinging. “What… what the hell, Okita-san?”

“China — Kagura-san —”

“You. You complete and utter ass,” she hissed. Hell no, she wasn’t going to wipe her eyes because she wasn’t goddamn crying, she _wasn’t_. Kagura leaned over and slapped her palm hard on the table next to Okita’s drink. She kept her voice low and harsh to keep it from shaking. “I am going to work hard here. And I’m going to make my own money. So that when Gin-chan and Shinpachi decide they really don’t need me anymore, I will have something to fall back on other than killing people. Because you’re right.” She grinned, an evil doll’s smile. “I’m very good at that. And people want to pay me to do it. Do you want that to happen, Shinsengumi captain? Feeling bored lately?”

God, but it annoyed her how he could remain so expressionless. If he wasn’t pulling a face to make fun of someone, he was still as stone, those red eyes all but masked.

“Kagura-chan? Is everything all right?”

Kagura tilted her head to look up into Tae’s face, full of polite interest. “Ah — ahhh. Otae-san. I —”

Her voice died in her throat as Okita covered her outstretched hand with his own. “Good evening, Otae-san. Looking lovely as ever. I think your new protege has had too much to drink.” He moved his sake cup pointedly away from their clasped hands. “She was just asking me if I was bored.”

“Don’t put it like that, you pervert!” Kagura tried to pull her hand away, but damn, Okita could maintain a tight grip.

“My, my.”

Kagura looked back up at her mentor. Tae was a woman of many smiles, and Kagura had learned to read most of them over the years. This one was pure Pissed Off Senior Hostess: new girl, red-faced, sprawled across a table + government official, radiating fake concern, holding her hand in a death grip = going to fucking kill you both.

“Really, Kagura-chan, boring your guest? I’m not sure my own can even handle the entertainment you’re providing them right now.”

“I — I’m sorry, Otae-san.” Kagura tried to discreetly tug her hand away to no avail. “The captain was… was just leav—”

“Yes, I think you mentioned something about the rooftop? Lovely, let’s go have a look.” Okita slid smoothly out from the bench without releasing Kagura’s wrist. “Sorry for the disturbance, Otae-san.”

Kagura allowed herself to be led up Snack Smile’s grand staircase for the sake of escaping Tae’s humorless smile. Okita opened the door to the rooftop patio — and Kagura tried not to stare.

Gintoki had never taken her and Shinpachi up here. She’d noticed Snack Smile’s balcony, of course, on her nighttime rooftop rambles, but seeing it up close was another experience.

Potted flowers ensured that the rooftop was as perfumed as the club below. A few couples laughed quietly here and there. Soft lights cast a pink glow, but corners were left strategically dark.

Kagura felt heat creep up her face. _Is this... part of the job?_ Sure, a softly lit balcony could make for a fun evening — she was an adult, after all — but she couldn’t imagine Tae, for example, coming up here with that drunken salary man.

“Having second thoughts?”

Okita spoke right into her ear, and she shivered. He chuckled. “You’re more naive than I expected, China.” He rested an arm around her neck.

Kagura straightened her shoulders. Not hard enough to shake him off — they weren’t alone, and she wouldn’t cause another disturbance — but the motion made him laugh nonetheless.

“This is not mandatory,” she invented quickly. “This is for long-term patrons of specific hostesses. It’s entirely up to each hostess to decide with whom she shares the rooftop view.”

“Is it?” Okita bent down to look directly into her eyes. “But I managed to get you up here without giving you any say at all.”

Kagura wanted to look away, but instead, she taunted, “Are you trying to frighten me, Captain? I am, as you are fond of reminding me, a Yato. It takes more than human threats to put us off our tea.”

He cocked his head, a faint smile on his lips. “Did you feel threatened by me?”

She raised her chin. “You have never so much as worried me, Okita-san.”

He stared at her for a moment, then bit his lip. It did nothing to hide the fact that he wanted to laugh. “Not even when I was going to beat you at stag beetles? Sadaharu No. 28, wasn’t it?”

Kagura blinked. That… that had to have been… seven years ago? At least? _What’s he doing, bringing up ancient history like that?_ “That’s — that’s a different kind of worry,” she managed. “That was my pet.”

“Ah.” Okita straightened. _Fuck, he’s tall now._ “Only when something’s going to get hurt, is that when you worry?” _And he really needs a haircut. So much hair._ It was brushing the collar of his uniform in the breeze.

“That — that was my pet.” _FUCK, I already said that!_

He raised an eyebrow. “Chiiinnaaaa, you’re not listening to me.”

 _Fair point!_ She gulped. “Captain. I’m not entirely sure what you’re trying to do here, but let me put you at ease.” _No, NO, that’s not what I meant to say!_ “I am not worried about my safety. This has practically been Otae-san’s second home for several years.”

“But Otae-san’s _mean_ , China.” Okita frowned at her. “There’s no way she would have let herself be lured to a dark rooftop, not even on her first day of work.”

“I — I’m mean! You’ve said positively loads of times —!”

“You’re good at killing things. I never said you were mean.”

“What — HOW IS THAT NOT THE SAME THING?”

“Because you kill to protect things.”

 _Or when I needed to eat and had no other choice,_ Kagura thought, but she wasn’t drunk enough to let go of that bit of information. “Yes, well.” She turned to walk toward the door. “We don’t have to talk about that anymore. Surely the shogun is wondering where you are, Captain.”

An arm snaked around her waist, and her head banged against a wall. “If you think the shogun is paying attention to any of his poor officers while he’s here — well, that’s _quite_ naive, China.”

“Dammit!” Kagura rubbed the back of her head. “That hurt, you ass! I’ve got hair ornaments in.”

“They’re gorgeous. Now.” Okita put one hand against the wall next to her head, the other in his pocket. “I’m going to tell Gin-san what you’re doing unless you can give me a very good reason not to.”

Kagura’s eyes flew open, then settled into a glare. “All right.” She wrapped her hand around his wrist. “I can break this. You know I can. I’ve broken your bones before.”

“I recall, believe me. But not good enough.”

She stared at him. “Really? You’d let me break your wrist just so you can play tattle-tale?”

Okita rolled his eyes. “You don’t announce that you’re going to break someone’s wrist, China. I’m ready for it now. When was the last time you actually hurt someone? You’re losing your touch.”

Enraged, Kagura clenched the fist that held his wrist, only to find empty air. She watched, startled, as Okita opened the door to the club.

“You know what? Fine.” He bowed to usher her through. “Let no one call me pushy. But —” He wrapped his arm around her neck as she tried to pass him.

Kagura gasped when his lips touched her ear. “You’re going to pay for me to keep quiet,” Okita whispered. "Will you wear that perfume every time?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kagura sucked in a breath. “Whose fucking client are you?”
> 
> Okita’s eyes went wide. “Well, I wasn’t aware I was anyone’s fucking client. But if that’s part of the arrangement…”

“Orrrrrrrraaaaaaaaa!”

The straw dummy flew across the dojo. Kagura landed in a crouch, touching down just long enough to spring into the air, grab a beam, and take the dummy down in flight, legs locked around its neck. She sat on it, panting.

_Clap. Clap. Clap._

Kagura looked up from the mat to see Gintoki. Late morning sunshine highlighted the silver-haired samurai in the doorway as he slowly applauded.

“Kagura-chan, that was amazing!” Shinpachi raced to her from Gintoki’s side.

“Ha, arigatou, nii-chan.” Kagura stood. She could feel the sweat cool on her forehead and grinned. _So glad they saw that and not five minutes before._ She had mistimed a kick and accidentally ricocheted the dummy into her own gut.

“Your aerial attacks are getting better,” Gintoki said, leaning against the door.

“Yeah, well…” _Be casual._ “We’ll need someone strong in the air for the Amanto ship raid in a couple weeks.”

Gintoki’s eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “True. It’s definitely a point of weakness.”

Kagura’s breath caught. _Is he finally letting me go on a raid again?!_

“Yamazaki-san’s been training, but he’d really do better with a sparring partner. What do you think, Shinpachi?”

Kagura’s mouth fell open.

“What do I think?” Shinpachi sounded more confused than usual. “But, Gin-san --”

Kagura couldn’t stop herself. “Gin-san, I’m one hundred -- one _thousand_ times better than Yamazaki-san in hand-to-hand. Are you relying on him for aerial support in your raid?!”

“Well, you’re right.” Gintoki shrugged. “The current plan is for him to stay hidden above, mostly as a lookout. But!” His eyes flashed, and he grinned. “He’ll need to be ready! And that’s where you’ll come in, Kagura-chan!”

“R-really?”

“Absolutely! With you training him, he’ll be in perfect shape for the raid!”

“What?! I’m already exactly what you need for the above lookout! Hell, you know I’d be wasted as a lookout! Why are you -- why do you _insist_ \--!” Kagura stopped herself before her voice broke.

Shinpachi watched her, open-mouthed. She forced herself to smile briefly at him. He was valuable in a fight, but man, did he come apart when anyone had _feelings_.

Gintoki waved him silently out the door. Kagura held her chin high as Shinpachi clumsily slid the door shut.

The dojo fell silent.

“Tell me why you’re cutting me out,” she said finally. Flatly. “You’re leaving me out. Am I part of the Yorozuya or am I not?”

Gintoki sighed and rubbed the back of his head. “Dammit. I should have known you would notice.”

Kagura barked a laugh. “Notice? Notice all the excuses? ‘Kagura, the client requested men only this time.’ ‘Kagura, this is beneath your skill.’ ‘Kagura, you’d be bored.’ Or my personal favorite, ‘Kagura, can you take Sadaharu for his walk?’ while you literally sneaked out the window!”

“Yes.” Gintoki frowned. “That wasn’t one of the better ones.”

“ _None of them were any good!_ You have absolutely, positively no reason to favor Shinpachi in your work over me.”

Gintoki sighed and let his boots slide out from underneath him. He settled on the floor, leaning against the wall. “Shinpachi is always Shinpachi. He’s good on the battlefield. Good at the simple Yorozuya jobs like cleaning an old man’s shed. He’s always Shinpachi -- strong. Kind. Always just calm enough to not piss his pants in public. Getting better with a sword.”

Kagura sighed impatiently, shifting from one foot to another.

“But Kagura-chan is not always Kagura-chan.”

She stopped moving. Stared at the man lounging in front of her.

Gintoki’s eyes were sharp. “Kagura-chan is very smart. Strong as hell. Always. But she is not always disciplined. Lately she lacks restraint when she fights.”

“You motherfucker." Her fists balled at her sides. "I train harder than everyone in the Shinsengumi put together.”

Gintoki stood and walked toward her. “This isn’t about training. This is about you becoming someone else when you fight. Someone who doesn’t care. Someone who kills because she can. Someone who turns off her humanity. That is not the Kagura-chan I used to fight with.” He stopped an arm’s-length from her. “Not the Kagura-chan I watched grow up.”

_So. An experiment to see how long a Yato can pretend to be a human being?_

Kagura felt as though the breath had been knocked from her, and all she could hear in her stunned silence was Okita’s mocking voice from the night before. “T-turns off… my humanity?” Her voice was small, and she hated herself.

“Kagura-chan.” Gintoki laid a tentative hand on her shoulder, and she instantly knocked it away. “I thought -- it just might work -- to keep you away for awhile. That if you didn’t fight. That maybe you could find…” He trailed off and looked at the floor. “Well, I’m a fool.”

“Yeah.” Her voice was thick. “Yeah, a bit. Don’t go deciding things on your own. Idiot.” She smacked his head lightly and was rewarded with a grunt. “Do you know a Yato once told me I was wasted on Earth? That my talents were being ruined because I wasn’t using them. I nearly killed him,” she added thoughtfully.

“I never said you weren’t talented,” Gintoki interjected quickly.

“And you… what were you trying to do? Make me more human?” She grabbed the front of his kimono and jerked him forward. “Gin-san. _I’m not_.”

Gintoki met her gaze steadily. After several seconds, the corner of his mouth twitched. “Then. Do you know what you are, Kagura-chan?”

_An Amanto. A traitor to her kind. A cabaret girl in training. A fighter. A killer. Lost._

She released her grip. “I… I.”

“Kagura-chan is smart. Hard-working. Skilled.”

She looked at him, mouth slightly open. Confused.

Gintoki grinned. “And much better at aerial fighting than Yamazaki-san. But --” He raised a hand as she started to renew her argument. “-- she could do with training as well. She needs to learn how to control herself in combat. How to defeat an opponent without relying on an ally to pull her back from the kill.” He sighed again, looking annoyed. “It would have been better if I’d just started there.”

“And you think me sparring with Yamazaki-san is going to do all that.” She couldn’t temper her sarcasm enough to make it sound remotely like a question.

“Not right away.” Gintoki crossed his arms. “It will mean that you’re sparring daily with an opponent who will constantly be at your mercy. It’s a given you’ll learn restraint -- if you kill him, the Shinsengumi will kill you.”

Her eyes widened.

“Of course, a bonus for the Shinsengumi is that their top spy is trained by a Yato. If you manage not to kill him, he’ll be quite the asset.”

“If I -- _manage_ \--”

“Really, it’s an excellent gig. I’ll give you an extra ten percent of the fee.”

Kagura nearly choked. “This _is_ a Yorozuya job! They’re paying you to have me train Yamazaki-san! _And you’ve already said yes!_ This has nothing to do with training me, you snake in the grass!”

“Oi, matte!” Gintoki raised both hands. “Not exactly! Sort of! It’s a perfect opportunity to fix a few small problems for everyone!”

“SMALL PROBLEM?! You’ve pretty much told me you’ve kept me away from combat because you think I’m a _killing machine_ , and now you’re relegating that to a ‘small problem?’”

“Twenty percent?”

“SAY GOODBYE TO YOUR SILVER BALLS, GIN-SAN!”

“MATTE!”

Kagura pulled her punch but kept her aim ready, eyes narrowed.

“Kagura.” Gintoki’s eyes hardened, and Kagura dropped her fist. This wasn’t Odd Jobs Gin anymore. Gintoki the samurai was not someone she liked to threaten. “Convince me in your sparring with Yamazaki-san that you’re ready to fight the way I need you to. You won’t be going out on another Yorozuya job until then.”

Kagura swallowed and glared at him. “Thirty percent.”

“... what?”

“You’ll pay me thirty percent. And I’ll ask Hijikata-san what the fee is, so don’t try to shortchange me.”

Gintoki smirked. “One hour. You know your way to the Shinsengumi dojo.” And he was gone.

The room was silent for a few seconds, followed by a brief flurry of noisy activity. The straw dummy’s head finally hit the ground twenty feet from its body.

\------

“Not -- not exactly like that, Yamazaki-san. Let’s try it again, and remember, you have to look for your landing point while you’re grabbing the knife from the air.”

“Hai!”

Kagura leaned back to toss the blunt knife into the air. Timing it so the Shinsengumi spy could catch it mid-leap was proving a challenge.

“Orrrraa _aaaaaaauuuggh!_ ”

Kagura closed her eyes as the young man fell to the cushions. Again. She had arrived at the Shinsengumi dojo two hours ago to find a temporary ropes course erected in the side yard. That was two hours of watching her hopes fall right along with Yamazaki. She admired that he got up every time, truly she did, and he really was fine at leaping from obstacle to obstacle. It was just the moment she threw another distraction into the mix that he would get overwhelmed and lose his balance.

It would probably be ages before he was capable of sparring with anybody on the ropes.

 _The raid is in twelve days. There is absolutely no way I’ll be able to show Gintoki what I’m capable of if Yamazaki-san stays this bad._ “That was better! But you’ve got to keep in mind that you’re never doing just one thing at a time.”

“She speaks from experience, Yamazaki-san. You’d better pay attention.”

Kagura froze. 

“Captain!” Yamazaki snapped to attention. Impressive considering he’d been a tangle of limbs a split second ago.

Okita returned the salute lazily. “Overdoing the first session is ill advised. Resume your regular duties.”

“Hai!”

Kagura eyed the captain warily as he watched his comrade walk to the barracks.

“Not bad. Only a hint of a limp.”

“Yes, well. I try not to kill my clients on the first day.”

“I commend you on an excellent track record.” Okita flashed her a grin. “He and I are both alive.”

Kagura sucked in a breath. “Whose fucking client are you?” _And why the HELL are you talking about that here?!_

Okita’s eyes went wide. “Well, I wasn’t aware I was anyone’s fucking client. But if that’s part of the arrangement…”

Kagura’s face went up in flames. “Goddammit,” she hissed. “What are you doing? You promised you wouldn’t say anything!”

“If I recall correctly,” he said, lowering his voice, “I said I would keep quiet. I am definitely speaking below my normal volume.”

“You _fuckhead_ \--”

“So what are you going to do about your… moonlighting now, hm? It would seem you have a genuine Yorozuya job once again. Back in the clan, as it were? Is there any longer a need for gold-trimmed yukata?”

“I… I. Well, I… haven’t said anything to Otae-san,” Kagura stammered. _Oh wow. Could I quit Snack Smile? I just started! Wait. Do I want to? I mean, it’s not like anything’s more certain now than it was before…_

“It’s just that I put money down for you for a month, and I’d very much like to know what the club’s refund policy is if you’re planning on quitting.”

“You WHAT?!”

“Oh, are we speaking normally again? The whispering thing was getting bothersome.”

“‘Money down,’ what the hell does that mean?” she hissed. “I’m still in training!”

“That means you’re cheaper, I found out.”

“Cheaper?!”

“Isn’t it so convenient? You’re guaranteed a commission right away, and I can watch up close while you struggle to hold down two jobs at once.”

Kagura stared at him, dumbfounded. “You’re an idiot. Even for a trainee, it can’t be that cheap, especially if you don’t split the sitting fee with anyone else. And you’ll be expected to drink while you’re there.”

Okita shrugged. “I throw myself into my hobbies, what can I say?”

She laughed humorlessly. “Wasting money in a cabaret is your hobby? What an example for a Shinsengumi captain to set.”

Okita gave her a closed-lip smile. He bowed and turned to walk away. “Remember the perfume.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heat seemed to crawl up her spine to her neck. “I meant, and I’m certain you know this, how do I never see you coming?”
> 
> “Why, China.” Okita slid into the booth after her. “The things you say. I had no idea you wanted to.”
> 
> “... what? Huh? No!” Forget the heat spreading up her neck. Kagura was certain the only thing not bright red about her were the butterflies on her yukata. “I… fuck!”
> 
> Okita raised an eyebrow. “You make this entirely too easy, you know that?”

“Developing a signature scent, are we?” Haru plucked the bottle from Kagura’s fingers as she knelt at his makeup table that night.

“It’s just to cover the smell of the night air,” she said dismissively. “I took the long way here.” Gintoki was obviously spending the night at Tsukuyo’s, so Kagura had left the Yorozuya flat early for her shift at Snack Smile. An extra hour rambling around Edo rooftops hadn't been enough to clear the day’s fog from her brain.

“Whatever.” Haru twisted and knotted Kagura’s hair expertly. “You wore that same scent last night. And that same, rather delicious, young officer has paid for you again tonight. Of course you went for the same bottle.”

“Ergh, he’s paying for my company, Haru, not me.”

“You are splitting hairs, you realize.” The esthetician had moved on to her makeup.

“I am watching him drink and listening to him, not sleeping with him. That is a very big hair to split.”

Haru’s mouth twisted in distaste. “All metaphors break down somewhere. And you,” he presented her with two lip colors, “are changing the subject.”

“Well, it was a boring topic.” Kagura tapped the light coral paint.

“Then your interest has certainly changed. You weren’t so dispassionate yesterday.”

“He was egging me on. I’m still inexperienced, Haru.” She batted her eyes at the slim young man. “I don’t know how to let it roll off my back when I hate a client.”

Haru raised his eyebrows for just a moment. “I sincerely hope you gain some experience with lying soon. You’ve already picked out your yukata?”

“Mm. The orange one. With the blue butterflies.”

Haru was just knotting the obi when Tae reached them. The senior hostess was making the rounds before the next shift went on the floor, discussing problematic clients, letting girls know about cancellations, and so on.

“Kagura-chan! I was worried about the orange with your hair, but you look positively aflame.” She lifted the girl’s chin. “And your eyes are particularly stunning tonight.” Tae grinned. “I can practically see dollar signs in them.”

Haru sniffed. “Naturally. My best work.”

Tae studied her protege. “I really wish you’d had a bit more time to sit with me before you began attracting clients,” she said with a sigh. “The look is on point, but other areas need polish.”

Kagura tried to keep her face blank. She had sort of already apologized for her rather awful first night on the job. No need to bring old trouble to the surface.

“But for tonight’s training, I’ll tell you this.” Tae smiled. “If you repeat your performance from last night, don’t bother showing up tomorrow.”

“What?!” Kagura’s mouth gaped. “But -- but that was Okita-san! For my first client, are you joking? A god would lose their temper!”

“Gods are notorious for losing their tempers. I hold you to a higher standard.”

“... higher than gods?”

“Kagura-chan.” Tae was still smiling. Her voice hadn’t changed. But something in the air brooked caution. “The captain has paid for your companionship five nights a week for the next month. In advance. Your inexperience leaves me at a loss to know how to stress to you the singularity of such a windfall.”

Kagura stared at her.

“That means don’t fuck this up,” Haru supplied. He pushed a comb into a knot of her hair. “Come on, darling. Show time.”

Primped and painted, Kagura found herself once again on the outside of the dressing room door. The floor manager showed her to a secluded table, smaller than the booths that accommodated walk-in traffic. Gauzy curtains, cut flowers, and lit candles all but whispered _Money. Money. Money._

She crossed her arms. _Dammit.  What the hell is he doing, the idiot?_

A server appeared at her elbow while she stood surveying the intimate scene. She waved away the proffered champagne. “Just a bottle of warm sake tonight, Rei-san, thank you. And water for me.”

“Not planning on drinking with me tonight, China? I confess I’m a little hurt.”

Her eyes flew open. Okita stood next to her, inspecting the rejected bottle wistfully.

“How the hell do you do that?”

“Oh it’s very easy.” He set the bottle on the table. “I stopped at the bar on the way over and asked for it.”

Kagura opened her mouth to retort, but Okita placed a hand on the small of her back. “Won’t you have a seat? Or is standing the latest thing at these places?”

Heat seemed to crawl up her spine to her neck. _There’s no way I should feel that through these thick robes._ She was seated before she found her voice. “I meant, and I’m certain you know this, how do I never see you coming?”

“Why, China.” Okita slid into the booth after her. “The things you say. I had no idea you wanted to.”

“... what? _Huh?_ No!” Forget the heat spreading up her neck. Kagura was certain the only thing not bright red about her were the butterflies on her yukata. “I… _fuck_!”

Okita raised an eyebrow. “You make this entirely too easy, you know that?”

Not trusting herself to say anything that wouldn’t be turned into an innuendo, Kagura settled for glaring at him.

“May I pour your champagne, Captain?” a tall, young server queried.

“Ah, Rei-san, isn’t it? No, I hear we’re drinking sake again tonight.” Okita gestured to the bottle of champagne. “We’ll try that on a more appropriate night.”

Kagura had managed to regain some composure during the interruption. _“If you repeat your performance from last night, don’t bother showing up tomorrow.”_ Losing the more expensive alcohol purchase probably wasn’t a great start to her second night on the job.

“Captain.” Kagura pitched her voice a little low and settled back against the bench, arms folded. “You’ve never told me what you’re up to with all this. A private table five nights a week?” She laughed, trying to imitate Tae’s throaty giggle. “What are you playing at?” _You want to flirt? Watch me lose my composure? Challenge accepted._

Okita smirked. “I like playing, China. And I particularly like playing with you. You think you can actually beat me.”

Kagura’s attempt at a sensual smile faltered. “And it would seem that I’m winning again, because heaven knows how much you’ve invested in this little game.” She gestured to the flowers and candles. “Whatever it is.”

“I would not call you having no say in who you spend your romantic evenings with ‘winning.’ Ah, thank you.” Okita sat back as Rei set the sake tray on the table.

Kagura reached for the bottle to pour. “I work here. Obviously I’ve chosen to be here.”

“Yes, shall we explore that?” He accepted a cup from her. “You’re training Yamazaki-san for us now. Do you feel some obligation to Otae-san that keeps you here?”

“I think you overestimate what the Shinsengumi is willing to pay a woman to train its spies, Captain.” She shot him a bright smile over her cup.

Okita leaned toward her, and she resisted the urge to press into the bench cushions. “So you need money.”

“I want options.” She kept her back straight, made herself stare directly into those strange red eyes.

“You feel you don’t have them?” He didn’t move back. “The Yorozuya and the Shinsengumi aren’t enough?”

 _But who knows how long the Yorozuya will last for me? Gin-chan seemed so… disappointed in me at the dojo._ She took a sip as an excuse to break the intense gaze. “You want me to leave Snack Smile so badly, Captain?”

Okita paused, then flashed his grin. “Not at all. My nights get so lonely and boring.”

The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. “Barracks life sounds lovely.”

“And you wear the nicest perfume.” His voice was low and quiet, his smile hiding a laugh.

Kagura didn’t move. Couldn’t. His face was inches from her neck. Pulling back would be tantamount to losing at chicken.

“Well, if yer not gonna kiss her, make room fer someone else, copper!”

A hand landed roughly on Okita’s shoulder. A large man, a wealthy merchant judging by the look of his robes, was swaying slightly behind the officer. Kagura tensed, ready to react to whoever made the next move.

But Okita was still. His posture sent shivers up Kagura’s spine, and not the light tingle from when his hand was on her back. _Move your hand away, man!_

The drunk shook Okita’s jacket. “I said get up, copper. You’re obstructing a civilian in the line of his duty.” The man’s laugh was crude.

Kagura stared at Okita’s face. Gone was the annoying playfulness, the insistent tease. His eyes were dead, his mouth stern. Muscles bunched under his uniform as he moved to stand.

_“If you repeat your performance from last night, don’t bother showing up tomorrow.”_

Her hand shot out to press down on Okita's thigh before she knew what she was doing. “I haven’t given this man permission to leave.” Kagura barely registered the haughty voice as her own. “And I have no interest in replacing him with one who makes sloppy demands.”

Okita’s eyes snapped up to hers, but she kept her glare firmly on the drunk, alert.

The man swayed back, and his hand fell off Okita’s shoulder. His eyes screwed up with the effort of switching his focus from the young officer to the dishy little hostess who was talking back to him. Not entirely sure how to handle the situation, he settled on, “Bitch.”

Kagura was at his throat before she could stop herself, her vision fading to red around the edges. “How drunk are you?” she asked quietly, immobilizing his chin in her tiny hand. “Or do you have a death wish?”

Confused at the turn of events, the drunk’s eyes were wide as saucers.

A pair of arms stole around her waist, and Okita’s voice was near her ear. “I’m sure you heard the lady, friend. I’m her preference for tonight. Oh, and fair warning.” Kagura could hear the smile. “Call her that again, and it’ll be the last word you say for a while at least.”

She was still smoldering, but the shock of being held against Okita’s chest had calmed the blaze. _Yes, just… just get rid of him. No need for… for anything else. Calm down._

They were in a more secluded corner of the cabaret, but Kagura could see a few heads popping up over the booths, a few curious glances in their direction. The man in front of her seemed to be deciding how belligerent he wanted to be. _Make this stop._

She reached up a hand to Okita’s face. He froze behind her. “Captain. Grab the bottle. I don’t believe we’ve fully explored the roof.”

He laughed softly, and it was all she could do not to gasp as his lips teased the shell of her ear when he spoke. “Yours to command.”

A light rain was misting the roof, and other couples were making their way back down into the lounge.

Okita sat at a small table under an umbrella. Kagura wordlessly followed suit.

“I forgot to grab the cups.” He handed the bottle to her.

She drank straight from it and handed it back. “I think we’re both beneath that.”

_“-- she could do with training as well. She needs to learn how to control herself in combat. How to defeat an opponent without relying on an ally to pull her back from the kill.”_

Kagura stared at her hands. Okita had pulled her back. _But I pulled him back first._ But Okita probably wasn’t thinking about literally breaking the man’s neck. _But he did say that it might be the last word the man would say for awhile._ For awhile. Not forever.

“You look entirely too gloomy to be under an umbrella in the rain sharing a bottle with an attractive officer.”

Kagura looked up quickly, then gave a short laugh. “Apologies. I don’t transition easily back into romance after violence.”

He smiled and took a swig. “So it _is_ romantic.”

She wrinkled her nose. “We are hiding up here in the rain to keep from damaging a poor drunk man beyond recovery. This is what does it for you?” She forced a smile, remembering her role. “I thought it was just my perfume.”

“Did you see his kimono? Definitely not poor. Certainly capable of the best medical care. It’s not just your perfume.”

“Were you even planning on doing anything when he grabbed your shoulder? I probably didn’t have to get involved. You’ve only ever complimented my perfume. It’s not even mine.”

“I was just thinking of delicately taking his hand off at the wrist. What do you mean it’s not yours? Whose is it?”

“Oh. That makes me feel… a bit better, unfortunately. It belongs to the cabaret. There’s a whole shelf of perfumes in the dressing room for anyone to use.”

“You’re relieved I only planned to maim him? I’ll bring you something else. Wear that.”

“I’m relieved I’m not the only one who wanted to hurt him badly. I won’t wear a scent I don’t like… not even if a _very_ self-entitled client tells me to.”

Okita drank from the bottle again and passed it to her. “So why didn’t you hurt him badly then?”

Kagura looked at him over the mouth of the bottle. “Are we done having two conversations at once?”

He grinned. “We’ll start flirting again in a minute, promise. Why did you hold yourself back?”

She gripped the bottle tightly. “Your memory is shit. _You_ held me back. Literally.” _Not blushing not blushing not blushing._

Okita leaned back in his chair, eyebrow raised. “Much as I enjoyed it, you could have plowed me through if you’d wanted to. So what happened?”

Kagura took a huge swallow, letting the sake burn her throat before she answered. _What the hell._ “Gin-chan said I lacked restraint.” Funny how the burn lingered.

Okita eyed her for a moment, those strange red eyes giving away nothing. She returned the gaze, daring him to offer advice, consolation. Anything patronizing.

“So nothing floral then.”

Kagura’s mouth when slack. “Wh-what?”

He stood and walked around the table. “The perfume I’m getting you,” he said, looking down at her. “Nothing sweet.”

Everything in her mental arsenal protested at her current position’s disadvantage. Kagura rose from her chair in what she hoped was a graceful, rather than reactionary, motion. “I told you,” she said, still looking up at him. _God, he’s tall._ “I’m not wearing anything I don’t like.”

“But, China.” He leaned down to look her in the eyes, his hands in his pockets. “Remember when I kissed your ear?”

Warmth rose to her cheeks instantly as she fought to keep her expression calm.

He bit his lip, just stopping his smirk from being _totally_ insufferable. “Ah. I thought you might. So, China.” Okita stepped closer, and Kagura realized her chair was pressing against her knees. His hands were still in his pockets. He wasn’t touching her in any way. But his chin was above her head now, and she wondered if he could feel the heat radiating from her face. “I was thinking. Next time I do that...”

Every hair on her body was standing at attention. She couldn’t have moved even if the chair weren’t immediately behind her.

“...I’d love to smell something spicy. Kind of… raw and… warm. You know?” Okita put his mouth right next to her ear. She felt his hair brush her cheek and just stopped a tiny squeak. “Something that definitely encourages restraint.”

Kagura could have laughed at the cheesy line.

If she weren’t suddenly having trouble breathing.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kagura realized, from this angle, she had a front-row view of wide shoulders and a muscular back. A back that sloped down to a neat waist. Followed by black slacks tight across a trim ass. Long legs with thighs and calves that...
> 
> “See anything you like?”
> 
> Her eyes snapped back to his. Okita was all but laughing at her, eyes sparkling under his bangs.
> 
> Kagura forced herself to look up at the sky. “It’s not a bad view.”
> 
> “Is it? I made sure to leave the jacket off just for you.”

The next morning, Kagura eyed the ropes course bleerily. It had been a rough night.

Damn _Okita_ , her sleep had been a thing of misery. Every time her eyes closed, she saw that smirk. Every time she turned on her pillow, she smelled a faint musky scent on her hair that conjured up a Shinsengumi uniform.

When the sun came up, she’d rolled out of her futon cursing his name. Gintoki had noticed her surly attitude but wisely kept his commentary to a raised eyebrow as they ate their raw eggs on rice.

“Yosh, Yamazaki-san.” She yanked on a pair of leather gloves in the training yard. “I’m coming up today. Try to throw me off.”

The dark-haired young man peered down at her from his crouch atop a post. “Kagura-sensei?”

“You’ve got, what, eleven days before your life depends on being good at this?” She jumped lightly, grabbed a low-hanging loop, and worked her up into the maze. She was level with the young spy in seconds and smiled grimly at him. “Don’t worry. I’m only in a rotten mood. I don’t have weapons or anything. Not like what you’ll have to deal with then.”

“Vice — Vice Chief said to be more careful when you don’t have your umbrella.” Yamazaki tightened his grip on a rope.

Kagura cocked her head. She rarely went out with her Yato-style umbrella anymore. The weapon was impossible to conceal, and its presence seemed to attract poor fighters with something to prove.

“He said it’s harder to see your hits coming.” But Yamazaki was inching toward her slowly, a bit pale but nonetheless determined.

“Did Hijikata-san say that, really?” It was too easy to predict where Yamazaki would place his next step. _But at least he’s watching me, not the ropes._ It was a large improvement over just yesterday. She backed away, like a parent teaching a child to walk.

“He sounded impressed.” Yamazaki was balancing on the same rope as Kagura now and inching closer. Well, nothing like a learning opportunity.

She smiled encouragingly, even as she flipped the rope to one side with an ankle. She swung easily to the next line over as Yamazaki fell to the level below with a surprised yelp.

“I’m flattered.” Kagura rolled her shoulders, feeling the tension of the night before fall away. “Don’t let yourself get distracted, Yamazaki-san. If your opponent’s talking, they’re probably trying to get you to look at their face, not their hands and feet. Pay attention to everything.”

Yamazaki’s eyes were wide as he lay on the net that caught him. His heart was probably still racing from the fall, but, “You have to get up quickly,” Kagura insisted. “I could have jumped down and had your chest open by now.”

Eyes now as big as duck eggs, Yamazaki scrambled to his feet and scaled the levels with a quickness that was pleasing. _We might actually be able to make this work._

A movement across the Shinsengumi yard caught her eye. A dark uniform was walking away toward the barracks. _What the —_ Kagura recognized the sandy hair and the _fucking_ shoulders instantly. _Okita-san was watching us train?_ His stride was eating up the ground. He looked natural and unconcerned with tiny redheads who may or may not be watching from a distance. Who may or may not be observing how very nicely the uniform’s pants showed off a rather fine —

Kagura felt the rope beneath her feet twitch too late.

“Assssss _fuck_!” She shot out a hand and grabbed a line to break her fall, finding enough tension to swing her feet back under her. Her dismount onto a nearby pole wasn’t graceful, but at least it was controlled.

Yamazaki darted over to her. “That was amazing, Kagura-sensei!” he crowed, eyes shining. “Is that what I should have done? Did you stay still on purpose when I tugged the rope to show me what do? I’ll definitely try to be that aware next time I fall!”

 

* * *

 

Hours later, Kagura was reflecting on how little sleep she’d probably be getting tonight too. Her back was against a wall on Snack Smile’s pink-lit rooftop.

Okita had one arm around her waist and his other braced against the wall above her head. Her nose was all but buried in his shoulder, and the clean scent reminded her of last night’s tossing and turning.

“Oh, sorry, did you say something?” she whispered.

The captain’s sigh was exasperated. “I said,” he hissed, “I don’t think he saw you.”

 _Ah._ Being shoved up against a wall by the body she’d been eyeballing all night had driven her initial alarm right out of her brain. Gintoki and Tsukuyo had walked out onto the roof just moments earlier. Kagura peeked beneath Okita’s arm. Currently, the other couple was admiring the view on the balcony a few feet away. They managed to look out over the city lights every once in awhile too.

Okita huffed and tugged her chin back up with his fingers. “Please do not let this be the way your boss finds out you work here. I’d rather not die tonight.”

Kagura stared up into those bizarre red eyes. She wondered if he felt how her chin was burning. “You’re saying you’d lose to him?”

“I’m willing to consider that I might get hurt. A lot.” He held her gaze, and Kagura got the distinct impression the silver-haired samurai was no longer front and center in his thoughts. Okita traced her jaw with his thumb.

“Better — better not move then.” _Oh wwaaaaaay to be obvious, Kagura, fucking hell._

“Mm.” Okita's voice was lower than it had to be. His hand dropped back to her waist, feathering over her shoulder and arm on the way. “We could probably move a little. To blend in more.” She felt his breath on her neck moments before his lips touched her skin.

Kagura couldn’t have kept her eyes open if she’d wanted to. “Has anyone ever accused you of being subtle, Captain?”

“Your pickup line was not much better,” he murmured against her neck. “And no.”

She slipped a hand underneath his open jacket and slid her fingers up his chest. If she was already being obvious, fuck if she wasn’t going to sample the shoulders that had been staring her in the face all evening.

His breath caught. “Oh, that isn’t fair, China.” He pulled back from her neck, and Kagura’s heart jumped when she saw his eyes. Half-closed and dilated, they surveyed her robes. White petals on a pink field this time. “I don’t think I can help you fix a disheveled yukata.”

“The Shinsengumi aren’t trained in that?” Kagura swept both hands across his chest and down his sides underneath the jacket, enjoying the little thrill of power as she felt his muscles tense wherever she touched.

“Care to add that to your schedule?” Okita finally managed. He ran light fingers around the collar of her yukata, sliding beneath the material to brush over her collarbone. Kagura swallowed a sigh, but he must have noticed. Laughing softly, he put his forehead against hers. “I’m a quick study,” he whispered. “And I’m obsessive about doing things correctly.”

 _You free tonight?_ But just then Gintoki laughed, a bright, happy roar, and Kagura blinked back into reality. _Holy… WHAT. This is Okita-san! Sadist! Sadist with a fine, fine ass. However! This is a job! One of your jobs! You are being unprofessional! And you don’t even like him!_ Kagura stole a look at the captain’s flat stomach, remembering the hard muscle she’d felt there just seconds ago.

Okita must have been awoken by the samurai’s laugh too. He straightened and licked his lips. Looked down at her with a rueful grin. “Well.” His voice was low. “Maybe this isn’t the best moment to discuss… new training.” He pushed away from the wall, and Kagura was shocked at how her hands hung in the air for just a moment.

Hours later, Kagura set aside her yukata in the Snack Smile dressing room after her shift. It would probably be a few days, she thought, before she’d be able to change out of one without blushing.

 

* * *

 

The following morning, Kagura was only able to knock Yamazaki out of the ropes once. The Shinsengumi spy wasn’t any closer to disengaging her, however. After yesterday’s lucky shot ( _fucking Okita_ ), Kagura was keeping her focus tight.

Of course, she wasn’t blind. Hijikata joined Okita on the far side of the yard to watch this time. She made sure to keep her back to them.

 

* * *

 

That evening, Haru handed her a note before she could even set down her bag in the dressing room.

 _“Don’t change,”_ it read. _“I’ll be on the roof across from Snack Smile.”_

When Kagura finally peered over the roof of the karaoke shop across the street, the first thing she saw was Okita. Sitting cross-legged on a blanket, drinking a beer. Looking at the night sky filled with ships. No jacket.

 _I am so fucked._ She swung onto the roof and landed lightly in a crouch.

She knew she made no noise, but Okita tilted his head to look at her. “Oi, you’re missing some prime reconnaissance, China.” He held out a beer.

Kagura knelt next to him. “That’s what this is?” She took the can. _Cold._ He couldn’t have been here long.

“What has your boss told you about the raid?”

She looked at him, startled. “You’re talking about that here?” she whispered.

Okita grinned. “China. Why did you think I asked you to such a lonely place?”

Kagura shot him a fake smile. _You know exactly what I thought you were doing, dumbass._

He gestured to the sky. “We’ll be raiding a pirate ship. A particularly tricky one. Apparently a small fleet has developed a radar sensitive enough that its ships are able to travel without any light at all.”

Kagura looked up. Hundreds of tiny lights, red, green, yellow, blue, blinked on and off. Ships signaling who they were, what they were carrying, where they were going. Few of them, she knew, were being honest about any of it.

“How small of a fleet?” she asked, taking a sip. It was a good beer.

Okita lay on his back, pillowing his head with his arms. Kagura kept her eyes resolutely on the sky. “Three? Four? We can’t be sure. Probably definitely less than 10.”

She took the excuse and looked down at the figure stretched out next to her. “Probably definitely?”

He grinned at her. “Probably less than 10. Definitely fucked if it’s more than that.”

Kagura choked back a laugh. “Why is it important that I know this? Yamazaki-san is your aerial support.”

“And you’re training him. Aren’t you at all interested in the way the ships move?”

She frowned. “How they move? You mean passing on the right and all that?”

“That works fine on water, but in the air, there’s a lot more room for error.” Okita gestured to a cluster of lights to the east. “Ships have to get close for a variety of reasons. It may not be worth the time to dock at a tower, so they form tight groups like that to do quick business. Someone who’s confident in their skill can get from one ship to another easily.”

Kagura settled back on her elbows, grateful for her silk trousers that let her stretch out her legs. “And you’ve scheduled the raid for a night when you know the fleet will be doing business.”

“Mm. We’ll be looking for a cluster like that,” he pointed again, “with unusual dark patches in between.”

Kagura clucked her tongue. “If the pirates are smart, they’ll turn on their lights like everyone else once they’re in the group.”

“We are really, really hoping they’re more prideful than smart. People call them the Dark Ships.” Kagura snorted, and Okita laughed. “With a name like that, they probably don’t want to show up to do business with lights blazing. Even if it’s smart. We’re banking on them being more faithful to their reputation than camouflage.”

“If their _reputation_ actually mattered to them,” Kagura said, rolling her eyes, “they’d be less literal about it. Turn your goddamn lights on. You’ll still be the fucking Dark Ships because no one will see you.”

Okita’s laugh was low. He rolled over onto his stomach, propped himself up on his elbows. Kagura inhaled sharply. _Too close too close too close oh fuck._ She could have counted his sandy-colored lashes if she hadn’t suddenly forgotten what numbers were.

“I’m eternally grateful you’re not a pirate. You’d take entirely too much of my time.”

Words went the way of numbers as Kagura realized, from this angle, she had a front-row view of wide shoulders and a muscular back. A back that sloped down to a neat waist. Followed by black slacks tight across a trim ass. Long legs with thighs and calves that...

“See anything you like?”

Her eyes snapped back to his. Okita was all but laughing at her, eyes sparkling under his bangs.

Kagura forced herself to look up at the sky. “It’s not a bad view.”

“Is it? I made sure to leave the jacket off just for you.”

Kagura’s throat went dry, caught between embarrassment and feeling like a kid at Christmas. She shifted her weight to one elbow and reached out a hand. Touched a shoulder. Ran fingers lightly down a bicep. Watched him shiver as she traced a sensitive tricep through his sleeve.

Okita let his head hang between his shoulders with a soft sigh, exposing a long neck. Kagura slipped her fingers under his collar, running them down to his knotted cravat. She tugged, surprised at how easily it fell away. She thought about going for the buttons next, but… she placed a hand softly on his back and leaned in to bury her nose in his hair. “I appreciate it, Captain.”

“China.” Okita’s voice was ragged around the edges. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pinned her back on the blanket. Okita straddled her easily, held her gaze for a heartbeat, and leaned down to cover her mouth with his own.

Kagura couldn’t stop a broken little moan. _“Obsessive about doing things correctly.” No fuck!_ The young captain’s lips moved against hers almost carefully. Sucking here, nibbling there. A bit of tongue against the corner of her mouth. She reached a hand to his waist, started tugging his shirt up from his belt, and was rewarded with a gasp against her lips.

“Oi, hang on.” He grabbed her hand before she got half the shirt untucked. “I started without a jacket. Ante up.”

Kagura blinked, then, smirking, kicked off her shoes. “May I proceed?”

“Weak.” Okita laid a hand on her stomach, rubbing his thumb over her soft red shirt. “But I’ll allow it. _Hhhhha._ ”

Kagura’s hand was already underneath his uniform, running light fingers over an impressive set of lower abs. “Captain.”

“Wh-what.” He raised his head to meet her eyes, and the look he gave her reached into her breasts and heated them from the inside.

She swallowed. “I want this off.” Kagura tugged at his loose shirt.

 _Fuck that grin, I bet it’s illegal in seven countries._ Okita sat back on his heels, but Kagura wasn’t watching him undo the wrist buttons. _Oh. My god._ She tried to focus back on the shirt, but when he tugged it overhead without undoing the front buttons, her eyes darted back down. _He’s… hard as a rock._

Kagura had a split-second glimpse of toned skin over lightly sculpted muscle before light flooded the rooftop.

“OI. THIS IS A PRIVATE BUILDING WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU —”

Kagura and Okita were running and over the side of the building in five seconds. He took the drainpipe, she jumped from awning to awning, and they met, breathless, in the alley below.

“What… what was…” Kagura fought the adrenaline. “How did anyone know we were there?!”

Okita looked up at the sky and sighed, hands on his hips. Kagura stole a look at his bare chest. “Looks like this is good night. I can’t go into the club like this, but you should go in and get another pair of shoes. Also, I have to go kill someone.”

Kagura opened her mouth to ask the obvious, but then Okita wrapped his arms around her and filled her brain with his scent and the feel of his skin. He kissed her, briefly, softly. “‘Night, China,” he whispered. And he was walking away.

“Okita-san!” she hissed after him. “Chotto matte! Who —?"

“Hijikata-san.” Kagura could just make out his white grin in the dark. “He told me that roof was perfect for watching ships.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Holding his gaze steady, Kagura reached under her hair and undid the clasps of her vest.
> 
> Okita’s eyes went black.
> 
> She dropped the vest, very carefully, right in his lap and smirked at his tiny gasp.
> 
> Kagura stepped up on the short wall of the rooftop’s edge, picked out the route for her descent, and looked back over her shoulder. From the look on Okita’s face, he wasn’t missing a moment of how the breeze ruffled her hair.
> 
> She smiled sweetly. Not your Yato trainer at the Shinsengumi right now. Sure as hell not your paid hostess either.

Kagura stood in front of her mirror and stared. She wasn’t going to Snack Smile tonight. Gintoki was off picking up a small boat for use in the raid. And she was all alone in the Yorozuya flat.  

A neat pile of clothes lay at her feet. Everything was gray, from the silk trousers to the soft top to the scarf for her hair. Perfect for jumping unseen from ship to ship during a night raid.

Kagura ran her hands over her pale torso. The last ten days of training had been intense — her body healed fast, but the bruises had kept coming. The one on her left shin came when she’d connected with Yamazaki’s forearm. The ropeburn across her abs was from a necessary but regrettable maneuver to keep from falling three stories. This one…

Kagura touched the light bruise on her forearm and blushed. Well. _That_ one…

* * *

 

_The hand had touched her shoulder immediately after she’d jumped down from the ropes course after a long morning. She’d simply reacted._

_Throwing her elbow back, Kagura shook off the hand easily, connected with a throat, and pivoted to land on top of her attacker. “Nice try, Yamazaki-san —” but her taunt faltered._

_Okita grinned up at her, his teeth neatly gripping her forearm. His eyes never left hers as teeth gave way to tongue. She watched, every hair on alert, as the Shinsengumi captain licked at her sweat, then began to nibble and suck at tender skin._

_She’d remained speechless when he finally kissed the back of her still-clenched fist and helped her to her feet._

_“Nice work today, China,” was all he’d said before walking away._

_She blamed her rapid breathing on the morning’s workout._

* * *

 

Kagura swallowed and fixed on another mark, this one on her left shoulder. A careless knife slash had left Yamazaki nearly in tears of fright and had strengthened her resolve that she’d never bring anyone else onto her Edo rooftops again. Not even if it _had_ been a better idea than another day of the same ropes course in the Shinsengumi yard.

That is. Until Okita had caught her on her way to work one evening…

* * *

 

_“What the hell are you doing here?”_

_Okita was just sitting there,_ lounging _practically, at the edge of her last rooftop. This was where she always jumped down to walk into Snack Smile. This was her secret route, where Kagura-sensei transformed into Kagura-chan._

_“Well, aren’t you impolite.” Okita gestured to the dingy roof, littered in the miscellaneous trash of the red light district. “I’ve come to walk you to work.”_

_Kagura stopped a cautious two feet away from where his legs stretched out in front of him. “I haven’t ever required that in my life. And you get politeness after I’m clocked in.”_

_“Is that what you call what we’ve been doing?” Okita stayed seated, the district’s pink and red lights glowing behind him. “Then your manners are… exquisite.”_

_Embarrassment flooded her, but Kagura’s lips curled. “So no complaints to management, I assume.” She sat on her haunches in front of him, reveling in the athletic freedom of her trousers._

_Okita’s eyes were on her face, but Kagura could tell it was only from trying very, very hard. She was wearing a simple vest that left her arms and abs bare — she hadn’t really intended anyone other than Haru and the other girls to see her between her flat and Snack Smile’s dressing room._

_“Just one really. Why don’t you wear that to work?”_

Fuck that fucking grin going to wipe it fucking right off your goddamn face. _Kagura stood. “Don’t be so shy, Captain. We both know you’d rather I didn’t.” She untied her scarf and shook out her red hair. The length of it fell around her shoulders and over her chest, wavy and flowing._

_Okita stared, and she knew he hadn’t seen her hair completely down since she was fourteen. Holding his gaze steady, Kagura reached under her hair and undid the clasps of her vest._

_Okita’s eyes went black._

_She dropped the vest, very carefully, right in his lap and smirked at his tiny gasp._

_Kagura stepped up on the short wall of the rooftop’s edge, picked out the route for her descent, and looked back over her shoulder. From the look on Okita’s face, he wasn’t missing a moment of how the breeze ruffled her hair._

_She smiled sweetly._ Not your Yato trainer at the Shinsengumi right now. Sure as hell not your paid hostess either. “ _Still wish I was wearing that to work?” And she jumped and forced herself not to look back up at the roof before she pushed open the side door to Snack Smile._

_Haru just grumbled something about what he should expect next after a person shows up once with no shoes and then with no top._

* * *

 

Kagura covered her naked breasts with her hands and caught her flushed expression in the mirror. Maybe… maybe it was time to start getting dressed. She had to meet Yamazaki and Gintoki at a rundown dock across town in an hour. She bound her breasts with efficiency and reached for her trousers.

Hm. A little wrinkled. Her flush deepened. Ah. Well. She _had_ left them in a bit of a jumble on the floor after her last training session...

* * *

 

_Kagura burst through the door of the Yorozuya flat late one morning, startling a sleepy Gintoki on the couch. “Don’t bother me for an hour!” she shouted, slamming the bathroom door shut._

_She stripped quickly, couldn’t wait to get the sweaty clothes off her body. As the fabric moved around her, Kagura closed her eyes against the scent. Hers, of course, but… Okita’s sweat had a… was a very… it was so… well. It mingled with her own scent on her clothes, and she wanted it off, damn him._

_The bathtub filled too slowly. Kagura grabbed the sink, trying to calm her breathing. Yamazaki had requested to watch her spar with someone else. It made sense — her moves would be more sophisticated and fluid against someone more challenging, and it would benefit Yamazaki to see how all his training should come together._

_Kagura stifled a groan so Gintoki wouldn’t hear. She’d suggested Hijikata. Yamazaki had returned with Okita. Okita, the man she’d quite literally fallen for on her second day of training._

_She bit her lip and looked at the tub. Full enough. She dumped enough lavender oil into the water to make everything in the flat smell like purple blossoms for the next month. Fuck if every move Okita had made on the ropes hadn’t been the most…  erotic thing, she’d ever… He moved like..._

_Kagura sank into the scented bath up to her nose. The heated water soaked into her hair and eased the tension at her shoulders. No one on the ground could have known what was going on. To all onlookers, and there had been quite a few once word got out, it was a sparring match between two skilled combatants. To Kagura…_

_She sighed. The heat really did feel amazing on her sore muscles. Every kick, every block, every jab had left her skin with a small caress. Kagura ran her hand up her thigh. Okita’s leg had wrapped around her there._

_And his hand had lingered a bit long here. She flushed as she ran a thumb over her ribcage. She felt the water swirl over her breasts and closed her eyes. She’d nearly fallen out of the ropes when Okita had stroked a hand just over…_

_Kagura’s mouth fell open in a silent sigh as her fingers lightly brushed a nipple. “Knew they’d be lovely,” she murmured, remembering Okita’s whisper._

_The lavender was heady, but the heat of the room seemed to intensify Okita’s scent more than anything._

_She had him helpless against the ropes once, could have forced him to jump, but she’d found herself leaning in to smell his hair instead. He’d tilted his head back to let her._

_She kept one hand at her breast, ran the other down her neck, between her breasts, and down, down._

_Locked against each other, Okita had pressed his hip into her crotch. Not light enough to be innocent, not hard enough to hurt — the perfect pressure to send her up in flames. She’d frozen on the ropes._

_Kagura swirled the water over her sex and felt the heat move against her. She could feel herself opening._

_Okita had shifted just a fraction, and she hadn’t been able to stop herself —_

_Kagura threw an arm over her face. Her fingers found that perfect center, and she favored herself with a few long strokes._

_It shouldn’t have happened, but fuck if the previous ten minutes of quote-unquote “sparring” hadn’t been goddamn_ foreplay _. So. So by the time Okita had her literally up against the ropes…_

 _Kagura bit down on her thumb, determined to keep her ragged breaths noiseless. She was wide and slipped a finger inside, pulled it out in a sensuous stroke up, up, up._ Oh god. _She didn’t want to wait. Two fingers spread her labia, and another tapped. And stroked. And rubbed._

_Okita’s head had whipped around at the sound she’d made. It was too quiet for anyone on the ground to hear, but it had been pulled helplessly from her core. His face had been flushed and dripping sweat, and she couldn’t believe it was only from the exercise._

_Kagura couldn’t stop a few tiny moans and desperately hoped Gintoki had fallen back asleep. Her strokes were quick and harsh._

_Okita had actually licked his lower lip. Hadn't said a word. But he’d moved his body away from hers and jumped lightly to the ground, declaring the match in her favor to the crowd. She had watched him leave, pissed that he wasn’t struggling to walk. She_ knew _she made him hard —_

_Kagura raised a leg to rest on the bathtub, needing to be as wide as she could, but stopped just shy of coming. She loved savoring her last two strokes._

_— she’d fucking_ seen _him get hard after all —_

_And one. She shivered, balancing on a knife’s edge._

_And two. And her whole body contracted, soundless, tense, and smelling of lavender._

* * *

 

A knock sounded at her bedroom door, and Kagura dropped the wrinkled trousers, eyes flying open. “Chotto matte!” she called and hurriedly stepped into the pants. _Fuck fuck fuck._ Between the adrenaline for the night’s raid and her trip down goddamn memory lane... well. A flushed face wasn’t the least of her physical awkwardness.

“Can’t be Gin-chan,” she muttered, grabbing her umbrella. “Yamazaki-san’s meeting me at the dock.” She stepped cautiously toward the flat’s front door. “Hijikata-san and Kondo-san are hidden until called as backup.”

“O-Otose-san?” Kagura struggled to keep her voice normal. Perhaps it really was just the landlady downstairs. Right. She raised her umbrella.

“China.”

The umbrella dropped to the floor. She stared at the door for a split second before running back into her room, leaping out the window, and crawling back across the roof.

Okita was facing her when she dropped lightly down onto the balcony in front of the Yorozuya door. “You need to be more quiet when you run across rooftops. Sounded like an elephant.” His eyes scanned her from head to toe.

She crossed her arms, remembering she’d only wrapped her chest and pulled on a wrinkled pair of silk trousers. “Happy to see you too, as always, Captain. I assume you know I’m busy?”

“I’m a bit behind schedule myself.” He gestured to her apparel. “It appears you spoke with your boss?”

Kagura was careful to keep her face blank. “I assume he complained to the Shinsengumi about my inclusion.”

“If threatening to help everyone commit seppuku is what the Yorozuya group calls ‘complaining,’ then yes.” Okita leaned against the flat’s door. “He complained.”

“And you are here because… he won? Or he lost?”

Okita shrugged. “We’ve contracted you to train Yamazaki-san. We’re insisting that means you accompany him on his mission.”

That sounded thin even to Kagura, but she was finally getting to go on a raid, and there wasn’t a thing Gintoki could do about it. She wasn’t about to quibble over contracts.

“I can’t say I blame him, you know.”

Kagura frowned at him. “How unlike you to say sentimental things, Captain. Not sure I care for it.”

Okita’s eyes flashed. “Don’t flatter yourself, China. I’m not here to beg you not to go. Frankly, I need someone to make sure Yamazaki-san doesn’t fall apart. Aerial is still relatively new for him.”

Weirdly stung, Kagura bit back, “Then enlighten me. What makes you show up on my doorstep?” She stepped closer. “Going to remind me I’m not human? Going to remind me that my job isn’t killing everyone in my path? Remind me that I’ll be on trial tonight? That I still haven’t proven I’m not a _fucking killing machine_?”

Okita hadn’t moved. Just watched her impassively. “I wondered what your fight with _danna_ was about.”

“Did you?” she whispered. She was in his face. “Well. There you have it in a tidy nutshell.”

Okita tucked a wayward strand of red behind her ear. “You’re not a machine. You’re a Yato, not a not-human. And _danna_ knows all of that.”

Kagura opened her mouth to snarl, moisture threatening at the corners of her eyes, but Okita was pulling something from his jacket.

“Like I said, I’m supposed to be… somewhere else right now,” he said, turning a black velvet envelope over in his hands. “But I stopped by to give you this.”

Kagura blinked and took the package. “It’s… it’s heavy.”

Okita frowned. “You think so? The man insisted they were the lightest of their kind.”

Kagura unwrapped the velvet and gasped. Two stilettos, their blades blackened to hide any shine, fell into her hand. Eyes wide, she turned them over, testing their weight, oohing and ahhing over their loveliness.

“Where… my god, where did you find these?”

“They really seemed perfect for you,” Okita said. Kagura snapped her head up to look at him. Okita, sounding… excited? “And look —” he took the velvet from her hands. “You wear the scabbard behind your back so you can pull them easily. Look, look.”

His touch on her bare shoulders was light, but Kagura turned her back to him. To distract herself from his fumbles, she examined her new blades again. Her breath caught.

“My… my god. Okita —?” She held up a stiletto so the man at her back could see it. “This is…”

The tugs on the scabbard ceased. A pair of strong arms in a Shinsengumi jacket encircled her waist. “Do you like them?” Okita whispered, tugging her against his chest.

Dozens of the tiniest umbrellas were etched into the slim bamboo hilts.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “We got a tip that the Dark Ships are an extension of the Harusame. Their advanced radar system means these four are the pirates’ primary drug distribution vessels.” Okita flopped into a chair in front of a monitor and spun around to face her. “Supposedly, they have something particularly nasty on board tonight. A neurotoxin, strong enough to knock out a Yato.”

The night breeze was cool and a bit stiff at this altitude. The pier was rundown, and unsavory types milled about on the poorly lit catwalks. It wouldn’t do to be off your guard here. A light shove was all that separated anyone from an afterlife-inducing drop to the city of Edo a thousand feet below.

Kagura was seated comfortably on a shipping crate next to Yamazaki. It helped to be confident that you were the deadliest thing on the pier. Her new black stiletto blades weighed lightly against the small of her back. She wasn’t still smiling about the gift, she _wasn’t_.

Yamazaki, on the other hand, was positively vibrating with nervous energy. His eyes were glued to the dock where Gintoki was due to appear.

“Any moment now,” Kagura said. There could be no coddling, but a soothing voice every once in awhile might keep him from doing anything stupid.

Yamazaki gave a tense nod, and then there it was: the throaty, low rumble of ancient machinery.

“Getchor APPles ‘nORANGes ‘nCHERRies here! PEARS ‘nMELons ‘nSTRAWberries!”

Kagura’s mouth dropped open. Gintoki clumsily steered the most battered little ship she’d ever seen into port, singing out loudly about… fruit. “PEACHes ‘nWATermelons!” he chanted as he tied up the boat with a flourish.

“Gin-san?” Yamazaki stood first, a shell-shocked look on his face.

The samurai cum fruit merchant spun around. “THERE you are!” he crowed at the top of his lungs. Kagura noted that he had added an eyepatch to his usual ensemble of white yukata and black shirt. A disguise, no doubt.

Gintoki waved them both forward impatiently. “We have SHIT TO SELL,” he shouted, “and YOU TWO are just STANDING AROUND. This is the problem with today’s youth!”

Any half-interested onlookers were now carefully looking at anything but the ratty ship. Selling and buying were not so much the local activity. At least, not for fruit.

As they pulled away from the pier, Kagura reflected that if one is loud and stupid, all people really want is for you to leave quickly. She and Yamazaki had probably caused more of a stir by just sitting quietly for twenty minutes.

“So they’ve found it?” she asked, sitting atop a sack of half-rotten apples.

“We should join the cluster in half an hour,” Gintoki said. He stood at the helm, straight-backed but at his ease. No trace of the exasperated fruit seller remained. Kagura grinned. The samurai was back. _And I’m going to fight right next to him. Finally._

When they were out of sight of the pier, sailing smoothly through Edo’s night sky, Kagura slipped over the ship’s rails. Thin nets hugged the belly of the tiny boat, and she snuggled into one. Yamazaki joined her a moment later, looking only a little pale as he cocooned himself similarly. Kagura gave him an approving nod. He practically melted into the silhouette of the ship’s hull.

If the breeze had been chilly on the pier, it was downright bracing strapped to the hull of a moving ship. _I cannot BELIEVE I am finally here. Okay, okay, deep breaths. Calm down. Don’t get excited. Alert. Aware. Quiet. Stealthy. Ready._

But Kagura could feel how warm her blood was in her ears. Even with her daily personal training and then the last couple weeks with Yamazaki, it had been too long.

A low thrum reached her ears. Judging from the way Yamazaki tensed next to her, he was hearing it too. Ambient light, just a thin glow at first, was getting brighter from above. She tapped Yamazaki lightly and held a finger to her lips. Speech would be minimal from here on out.

“APPles ‘nORANGes ‘nCHERRies here!” Gintoki sang out above them. “PEARS ‘nMELons ‘nSTRAWberries!”

But far from being the only loud mouth, he was joining a cacophony. “Ikiyaki right here! Squid onna stick!” “Dango dango dango!” “I’ve got CURRY! Beef chicken shrimp CURRY!”

Kagura kept still as Gintoki wove the ship through a nest of small vendors, all of them jockeying for position next to the larger merchants.

“It’s like remora and sharks,” Okita had said one night at Snack Smile. “The big guys gather to do the serious business, but the little guys stick close. There’s always a bit of profit to be made if you don’t mind one of the sharks occasionally taking a snap at you.”

 _Fuck Okita._ She had to keep her head clear. The buzz of a promised fight combined with that sandy-haired piece of ass? There’d be no ropes to catch her in an unguarded moment.

A line fell over the side of the small boat. Gintoki’s signal that he’d pulled up next to a large ship. Kagura disentangled herself from her net. Yamazaki followed suit.

“Sir! Finest apples! Cherries so sweet —”

“Fuck off.”

Kagura grabbed the rope Gintoki had tossed over the side and swung away from the tiny ship’s belly. _Please please. YES._

The crew had been sloppy. The merchant ship’s docking lines were looped lazily from its rails, and Kagura tugged one experimentally before letting go of her own. She swung the rope back to Yamazaki, praying he would catch it.

“Not a cherry man, hm? I’ve also got, just today, a fresh bushel of —”

“Fucking shit, I’m telling you —”

“Well, I don’t usually carry that, to be honest. Not much demand, you see.”

Kagura caught Yamazaki’s outstretched hand and guided him to a line next to hers. Silent as wraiths, they crawled up the side of the merchant ship.

“What? Who’d want —?”

“It’s tough to keep fresh. Well, _you_ understand. But we aim to please! If you give me just a moment, I can arrange...”

Exactly what Gintoki would be able to arrange was lost on Kagura as she came level with the ship’s deck. _Are you fucking serious._ The only light on the entire ship was stolen from the glow of others jostling each other nearby. _They really are keeping all their lights off?_

With Gintoki still rattling off goodness-knows-what kind of promises to the crewman, Kagura pulled herself up over the railing. She left Yamazaki to his devices and lost herself in shadow again as soon as she could.

_I mean, the Dark Ships. They are literally keeping their lights off so they can still be “Dark.” Even though they stand out like a fucking —_

Kagura was in the shrouds now and climbing higher. She paused to assess Yamazaki’s progress and gasped at the scene spread out around her.

Twenty? Thirty? Dozens of ships of all sizes combined to create the illusion of a small, floating city. Lights twinkled from most of them, the tiniest vendors darting here and there like fireflies.

And perfectly stationary, in the center of the entire mess, were four unlit ships. _Fuck… how do I tell which one is the lead?_

Yamazaki was at her side. Wordlessly, he pointed back to Gintoki’s tiny boat. As the samurai continued to argue with the Dark Ship’s guard ( _that man must be bored if he’s taking this long to talk with Gin-chan_ ), Kagura noticed three shadows slip over the rear of the little ship.

 _Hijikata-san. Kondo-san. And…_ “Okita.” A flash of annoyance shot through her. She’d known they were all supposed to convene here. She hadn’t known the three officers had stowed away on Gintoki’s boat.

 _Still not trustworthy, hm?_ Kagura cursed under her breath and turned to Yamazaki. “Move to the first ship on starboard,” she whispered. “I doubt this is the one giving orders to the others. Not with that idiot guard. We got too close too easily.”

“Hai.” Yamazaki gave her a grim nod. “And you?”

Kagura glanced at the second ship to starboard. Of the four Dark Ships, it was closest to the inner circle. Theoretically, closest to whatever business would be conducted. _And nobody’s told me what that is,_ but she shook her head. Now was not the time.

It’d be easier for Yamazaki to continue on further inside the cluster than it would be for him to backtrack to the ship farthest to port. “Yosh. I’ll be to port. Yamazaki.” Kagura fixed him with a firm glare. “If you find the lead, send your flare as soon as you can. Let’s end this quickly.” _Quickly. Maybe I won’t turn into a monster._ “Ganbare.”

And she scaled higher into the shrouds.

The gaps between the Dark Ships were minimal. The crew had even set planks between their rails. So obviously a lot of back and forth communication. _But who’s starting the conversation?_ Kagura secured a line in the crow’s nest and drew in a deep breath to stem the adrenaline. No safety nets here, but god, nothing could have stopped her from swinging out into the dark night.

The wind tugged at her gray scarf, whipped her trousers around her legs. Kagura felt a maniacal grin spread across her lips but didn’t struggle against it. It was happening — her blood was hot, her muscles were taking over for her brain.

She released the line and sailed untethered through the air, landing soft and soundless on the crossbeams. Kagura molded her body to a beam and scanned the deck below.

The atmosphere was a bit different here. No lights, of course, but after a few minutes of quiet study, Kagura picked out the pattern of a patrol. Two guards did a complete sweep of the deck from fore to aft every five minutes. And one… she peered closely… yes, one guard stood perfectly motionless at the hatch.

She smirked. _Well, hello._

Kagura pulled the small flare gun from her trousers and pointed it at the sky. “Boom,” she whispered. A faint red light burst high above her.

Sometimes, she had to admit, the Shinsengumi were a rather impressive lot. For humans, they were admirably quick. Kagura watched as first Hijikata, then Kondo swung onto the deck below, leveling guards one and two.

 _And for the main event..._ Okita landed behind the man at the hatch.

Kagura propped her chin in her hand. The Shinsengumi captain’s movements were smooth, but the guard was responding well. If Okita had struck to kill instead of just taking out the man’s legs from the beginning…

A movement caught her eye. _A fourth?! Where’d you come from?_

Kagura moved into a crouch. How could she have missed a guard? She was supposed to stay aloft, but where was Gintoki? And Yamazaki was probably still too far away, even if he’d been watching for her flare.

Okita had wrestled his man to the ground, by all appearances unaware of his new stalker. _Turn around, Okita-san! What the fuck are you doing?_ The fourth guard unsheathed his katana.

And Kagura leaped.

She whipped out her stilettos moments before her knees slammed into the guard’s shoulders. The blade in her left hand went through the man’s jacket, pinning him to the deck, and the blade in her right was at his throat. “Idiot Okita!” Kagura spat.

The young captain looked up from dragging aside his own unconscious opponent. “Ah. Wondered where you’ve been.” Okita glanced at the black knife in her hand. “How are those working out?”

Kagura blinked. “You… they’re. Fine, I guess?” She glared at him. “What do you mean, where have I been? Yamazaki and I —”

“Yosh.” Okita pulled aside the hatch. “Keep an eye out for him, will you? He probably found someone to play badminton with. Send him down when you see him.” And he jumped into the darkness below.

“Oi!” Kagura screeched. “If you think I’m waiting up here for you to have all the fun —!” She only faintly heard Hijikata hiss for them to both wait _goddammit_ as she swung down after Okita.

The hold was dark, but pinpoints of light flashed on an impressive control deck. Okita stood silhouetted against a bank of monitors. _How does he look good even outlined in blue?_

Kagura swallowed hard and crept up behind him. “See anything you like?” she whispered.

Okita glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and smirked. “These monitor the energy draws of the ship’s holding cells. And I very much like what I’m seeing here.” He tapped a screen.

The information on the monitor meant nothing to Kagura, and she felt her blood simmer. “This is the moment where you tell me what the hell it is you’re looking for, Captain.”

“Is it? I suppose that would make things more fun for you.”

Kagura opened her mouth to snarl, but decided against it. She couldn’t deny that she was having rather a lot of fun.

“We got a tip that the Dark Ships are an extension of the Harusame. Their advanced radar system means these four are the pirates’ primary drug distribution vessels.” Okita flopped into a chair in front of a monitor and spun around to face her. “Supposedly, they have something particularly nasty on board tonight. A neurotoxin, strong enough to knock out a Yato.”

Kagura sucked in a breath. “But — a Yato? But, Kamui —” She stared at her feet in confusion. Her brother was the head of the Harusame. And, obviously, a Yato. “Why would he… traffick in something like that?”

Okita shrugged. “Most drugs are harmful to their dealers.”

“Well, fine, but Yato are rare. And a drug harmful enough to affect one of us is even more so.” Kagura shook her head. “What is Kamui thinking even getting near the stuff?”

“Must be pretty rich cargo. And I’d rather it never made it into Edo. So…” Okita spun his chair back to the monitor. “A couple of the cells are using up quite a bit more energy than the others. Look.”

Kagura just stopped herself from gasping when he reached back and grabbed her hand. A quick tug, and she was in his lap staring sightlessly at blinking lights. _What the hell what the actual fucking hell._

“Here and here.” Okita pointed. “At least one of these has to be storing the toxin. They may have split the shipment into two cells, but I doubt it. I’ll check this one, you find that one.”

His hand was drifting slowly up her spine. It took a bit more concentration than she’d like to admit to absorb the digital layout of the hold. When his hand reached the hair falling from her scarf at her neck, Kagura took a deep breath and stood.

“Not in a hurry, Captain?”

He cocked his head, that fucking sexy smile playing at his lips. “I’m never in a hurry when I’m with you, China.”

She rolled her eyes. _That was utter cheese. And I am not affected by it. My heart is not beating faster. Except… I bet he wouldn’t be._ She stole a glance at him. Leaned back in the chair, legs spread casually. _Damn. He probably wouldn’t be in a hurry at all. God, fuck him._

Kagura straddled his legs before she sat down on his lap again. Slowly. Facing him. Rested her elbows on his shoulders. “You really should pick your moments better, Captain. Hijikata-san and Kondo-san may even be in the hold already.”

She relished how he could keep his hands off her while she did whatever she wanted. Okita kept his arms motionless on the chair rests. “Would it pique your interest at all to know they’re waiting for Yamazaki-san and your boss?” he asked. “They’re keeping the deck clear for us.”

Kagura sifted her fingers casually through his hair. His eyes drifted shut, and she bit back a smile. “Much as I’d love to do this all night, Captain…” She kept herself from laughing, somehow, when Okita’s eyes flew open. “... don’t you want to see what’s in those cells?” She stood, pulling out a stiletto. “First, at least.”

Okita rose from the chair, pinning her against the massive computer. He reached behind her head for the knot of her scarf and gently pulled her head back. “China. Don’t tease.” He lowered his head and whispered against her exposed throat, “Don’t talk about later if you don’t mean every…” his lips brushed her skin “... word…” and again, a bit higher “... of it.”

His eyes were narrow, and her own widened, drinking in every word, every promise.

And then the alarms sounded.

They both spun toward the hatch just as Kondo jumped into the hold. “Sougo! Kagura-san! We’re running out of time! MOVE.”

Heat flooded her face as Kagura raced down the hall toward her assigned cell. _What the hell, Kagura! You’re working! Do you think you could stop absolutely_ wasting _time?_

Numbered cells flashed past as her as she ran. She was looking for the one at the far end, she knew. The farthest door, the most remote…

She skidded to a halt.

Kagura knew doors like this.

She just hadn’t seen one in a very, very long time.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She heard his heart rate speed up as she slid the vest down over his arms. “I’m not into the idea of you calling me ‘Captain,’ not for… this,” he said finally. He faced her. “And I don’t want to be Okita-san either.” His color was heightened, and he stood with his hands on his hips.
> 
> “All- all right,” Kagura said carefully, a bit confused.
> 
> Okita reached out and lifted a strand of her hair off her shoulder. He smoothed it between his fingers, then let it fall behind her back. Traced his fingers up her neck, then back down along her bare spine.
> 
> She closed her eyes and breathed deeply.
> 
> “Sougo,” came the whisper at her ear. “I want to hear you say it.”

Kagura stared at the door as though it might spring to life and bite her.

Thick wood from trees you’d never find on Earth.

Hinges and rivets and bindings made of an alloy of metals from three different planets.

A lock set with pins not even a Yato could kick out.

Well. That was the whole point of the door, yes? Kagura grimaced.

A door not even a Yato could get through.

She surveyed it closely. Could be a fake. Probably wasn’t, given the cargo and the fact that this was essentially a Harusame ship. She’d seen others attempt to take out these doors — there was always a Yato somewhere stupid enough to try it — and Kagura didn’t see the point in breaking her bones on this one.

The only way she could possibly get in…

Kagura tried the handle.

“Ha! Yatta!” The massive door swung in.

One stiletto in hand, she eased her way into the room. It was a cabin, dimly lit with emergency lights. A handsomely made bed graced one corner, and fine rugs lay on the floor.

“Tch. Cushy.” Kagura ruffled through a hand-carved chest of drawers and a spacious closet. No personal belongings anywhere. _Well. Definitely no Yato on board if no one’s using this room._ She wondered if it was reserved for Kamui whenever he happened to grace a Harusame vessel. _Probably has one of these on every ship._ Part of her — a very small part — was relieved her brother at least had the sense to not accompany a pirated shipment of drugs known to be harmful to him.

She turned to leave — obviously no drugs here — when the entire ship jolted forward and then back just as suddenly.

Kagura flew backward, hitting her shoulder sharply against the bed. “Aauugggghh! Uhh…” She managed to get to one knee before the floor lurched again. The shriek of twisting, tearing metal filled the air, and she watched in horror as the walls around the door buckled.

The cabin tilted sharply, but Kagura struggled to the door. “No. No, no, no, NO.”

She tried the handle. Kicked at the wall next to the bent frame. Yanked, tugged, and kicked some more until her breaths came hard and quick.

“Uuugghh.” Kagura finally slid to the floor. The frame was smashed in, effectively rendering the door immovable. Someone from the outside could _probably_ coax the massive door through its twisted frame with her helping from the inside, but… she banged her head against the door. “Gin-chan! Don’t take forever please!” she yelled, more to make herself feel better than anything.

It had been a long time since she’d felt trapped. Kagura hugged her knees. _Not that I’m trapped. This is not trapped. This is… inconvenienced. For an indefinite period of time._ The situation would be less worrying if she knew why the hell the ship had lurched so badly in the first place.

“And the others…” Kagura traced the pattern in the rug idly with a finger. _Gin-chan. Hijikata-san. Kondo-san. Yamazaki-san. Okita…_ All professionals, all capable of handling pretty much anything. “Dammit.”

She stood. Turned to the door and pounded the immovable hunk of wood and metal with her foot. “OI, GIN-CHAN. GET YOUR CURLY ASS DOWN HERE I WANT OUT FUCK THIS NOISE.”

Kagura set her foot down with a sigh. “Fuck.”

_Wait. What. Was that._

She put her ear to the door and held her breath. Just then, that had sounded suspiciously like a laugh.

“China.”

Kagura sucked in a breath. “Okita-san?” she whispered.

“Oh, so you’ll scream out for the boss, but I get whispers?” Pause. “I suppose I can live with that.”

She glared at the door. “Bastard. Stop flirting and tell me what the hell’s going on.”

A heavy sigh. Then, “Well, I found the neurotoxin. So yay. I have to assume you did not, so I’ll save my questions about what _you’re_ doing for later. Vice Chief made the discovery that this ship controls the other three Dark Ships by remote. So the crews onboard each are minimal.”

“Really? Remote! Wow! What the fuck does that have to do with why I have bruises all over my body from being knocked around in this cabin?”

Another short pause. “Are you alone in that cabin?”

Kagura blushed. “Sh-shut up, dumbass! I meant why did the ship lurch?”

“Oh. Well, yes, the remote is responsible for that. Chief got starboard and port mixed up when he was keying in instructions for heading back to a Shinsengumi pier.”

Kagura leaned her forehead against the door. “Unbelievable. Who let Kondo-san handle a remote?”

“I am utterly blameless in this.”

“You’d better be. Because I can’t get out, and when I do, I’m going to hand someone’s goddamn _ass_ to them. On a tea tray.”

“Wait. What do you mean, you can’t get out? Why haven’t you kicked this down yet?”

Kagura knocked on the door. “Ever seen one of these before, Captain? Perhaps not, you being a human and all. Super-important Yato keep these doors on their private rooms. It’s really difficult to break through them by force.”

“What? Do _locks_ not work for you people?”

“Hey! It’s not like we all wander around looking for doors to bust through! We know how to respect a closed door!”

“So you’re telling me every building in Edo is basically a pastry shell to you.”

“The extent to which Edo security has not adapted to the influx of Amanto is laughable.”

“But you’re stuck.”

“Oh yes. Let’s bring this back to what’s important.”

Light shuffling sounded from the other side of the door. “So it looks like the door is too heavy for the frame — didn’t like the force of moving back and forth that quickly. Can’t you kick the frame in?”

“Triiiiieed that,” Kagura sang. “The frame’s all twisted. It’s like it reinforced itself. But you’re almost as strong as I am, and the door isn’t locked. If I pull and you push, we _might_ be able to coax it free.”

“Note that I am ignoring the comment about my strength and still willing to help you because I’m a gentleman.”

“Also you’re not a gentleman at all.”

“How very rude. After all we’ve been to each other, China?”

 _That little…_ She narrowed her eyes. Put her mouth close to the door and lowered her voice to a purr she knew he liked. “As I recall, Captain, we haven’t been anything to each other yet.”

This was the longest pause yet. “You realize that raises nothing short of a million questions.”

“Let’s say you get two.”

“Are you really alone in there?”

Kagura frowned. “That’s your first question? Of course I’m alone.”

“And do you think we’ll be able to get this door closed again?”

The heat hit her face in an instant. “Y-you haven’t even seen the room yet.”

“I have very few turn offs, China. The door swings in, yes?”

 _Okay, okay, deep breath._ Kagura backed away and stared at the door. Imagining Okita just on the other side. With his sandy hair falling in his eyes. Maybe his jacket would be off while he worked at the door. _Yes. I definitely want this open._

She turned and headed for the closet. Broke off the metal bar that served as a clothes rack. And wedged it between the door and the frame.

“Ready, China? I’m going to kick it right above the handle. Make sure whatever you’re doing isn’t going to hurt me.”

“Wimp.”

“This is a situation where you thank your stars that I’m not.”

Kagura grinned. “Count off for me.”

“One… two…”

On three, Kagura yanked the bar back toward her chest as Okita slammed into the door with a powerful kick.

Metal whined, and though the door budged, it remained resolutely shut. “Again,” Okita said.

Hoping the bar wouldn’t snap, Kagura waited for the three-count before they tried the combo once more.

The third time, the pole bent at a right angle. She could straighten it out but knew it was too weak now to be of any use.

The fourth attempt — another kick and a sharp yank on the handle — had Okita falling through the sudden opening.

“AUGH.” Okita’s head caught Kagura on the chin and a knee gouged her thigh.

“Ah, well, I can’t say this is exactly what I’ve been dreaming of.” Okita knelt over her. “But I’m certainly not in the mood to complain.”

Kagura rubbed her chin. “Can I complain?”

He slid the scarf out of her hair, combing through the long red strands with his fingers. “You want to?”

She rolled her eyes. “Ugh. Get off me.”

Okita raised his eyebrows but obliged, rolling over to his side. Kagura stood and kicked the door shut. The heavy wood slammed hard back into the twisted door jam and stuck fast.

“Chiiiina. That’s going to take forever to get open again.”

She looked back at him over her shoulder. “Now who’s complaining?” She pulled her shirt over her shoulders and threw it at him. The binding around her chest was still firm, and she flipped her long hair back over her shoulder.

Okita leaned back on his elbows, but, Kagura noticed, he wasn’t scanning her from head to toe. She cocked her head. This wasn’t the Shinsengumi captain she was used to entertaining at Snack Smile.

He held her gaze, those red-brown eyes soft and hooded. The cocky smirk was gone. Slowly he got to his feet and closed the gap between them.

Kagura looked up — this young man she’d known since childhood had kept growing tall long after she’d stopped. She sucked in a breath when he held her jaw lightly in his hand.

“Complain?” His voice wasn’t quite a whisper. “The fact that you’re here, like this, with me…” his hand fell to her bare shoulder… “is nothing short of mind-blowing to me.”

Kagura swallowed. His thumb was feathering lightly over the pulse in her neck while an arm curled around her waist. She raised her hands to his face, watching as his eyes slid shut.

They’d shared more than a few kisses together in the darker corners of the hostess club, and Okita had apparently been taking notes. The way his lips moved over hers, the subtle way he started licking her tongue, the heat of his hand in her hair… it all seemed perfectly studied to draw the tiniest sighs right from her chest.

“Mm… can we get rid of this damn jacket yet?” she murmured against his lips, tugging at his collar.

Not leaving her mouth, Okita shrugged out of his uniform’s coat. Kagura smiled into their kiss when she heard it hit the floor. “Why do you hate my jacket so much?”

“Don’t worry.” She slid her mouth down his jaw, her fingers untying his cravat. “It’s partly responsible for why you get to touch me in the first place.”

Okita groaned as her tongue found a sensitive space on his neck. “Thought you hated my whole uniform.”

“I admit that sometimes I’m not attracted to the Shinsengumi,” Kagura said as she picked at the buttons on his vest. “But you wear its clothes well, Captain.”

“Okay.” Kagura blinked at the normal tone of his voice. Okita straightened and looked down at her with a serious eye. “I’ve been meaning to say this, but ‘Captain’ has got to go.”

She raised an eyebrow. “I know you want to be Vice Chief, but I don’t do role play.”

 _Oh my word. Did he just… blush?_ Kagura watched, mesmerized, as Okita turned away, fumbling with his vest. “Not at all what I meant, China.”

“Oi,” she said softly, following him across the room. She reached around him to stop his hands. “I want to do that.” Kagura rested her cheek against the broadness of his back, smoothed her hands over his chest. As she found the last buttons, she asked quietly, “What did you mean?”

She heard his heart rate speed up as she slid the vest down over his arms. “I’m not into the idea of you calling me ‘Captain,’ not for… this,” he said finally. He faced her. “And I don’t want to be Okita-san either.” His color was heightened, and he stood with his hands on his hips.

“All- all right,” Kagura said carefully, a bit confused.

Okita reached out and lifted a strand of her hair off her shoulder. He smoothed it between his fingers, then let it fall behind her back. Traced his fingers up her neck, then back down along her bare spine.

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply.

“Sougo,” came the whisper at her ear. “I want to hear you say it.”

An evil thought blossomed in Kagura’s mind. “Please make me.”

She heard him suck in a breath, then, “Oh, China. Do you have any idea how much I want to.” His fingers found where she’d tucked in the cloth binding around her chest.

Kagura raised her arms to rest on his shoulders, letting him unwind the cloth freely. Fingertips brushed her ribs, her back. Lips nibbled at her ear, along her neck. She still held his vest in her hands, and she bunched the material to keep from sighing.

The last of the binding gave way, and she felt Okita toss the cloth strips to the floor. She shivered as he ran his hands lightly up her ribs, felt him find the sides of her breasts. When he groaned at the softness of her skin, Kagura let his vest fall from her hands, needing to have his shirt off _now dammit_.

“Oi, did you just drop my vest?” Okita backed away and stooped down to grab the black fabric.

“Wh-what? I’m letting you touch my… _me_ , and you’re… fucking _concerned_ about your vest?”

Okita looked up at her from where he was fiddling in a pocket of the garment. His eyes fell to her chest. “Oh. Oh god. Um.” He straightened, clutching something in his fist. He breathed heavily, still staring. “God, China. You’re absolutely… No!” Okita closed his eyes and pinched his nose. “No, this is not how I wanted to do this. Here. I got you this.”

Bewildered, Kagura looked at his outstretched palm. A tiny vial lay there, and Okita untwisted an ornate cap. “I was… I’ve been looking,” he stammered. _Stammered. He is fucking stammering._ “And it took awhile to find something that seemed to suit you. Ha, well, I found the knives first, I hope you like them, but I finally did find a perfume that I think —”

Kagura held up a hand. “Wait. Perfume? I told you, I’m not wearing anything I don’t like. Also, can I tell you how very weird I feel accepting a gift from you while I’m topless? And you’re not?”

“Really? Well, if it helps.” Okita tugged his shirt overhead, not bothering with the buttons.

Kagura took her turn to stare. She’d only caught a glimpse of his body once before when they were interrupted on the roof a week ago. _I was so_ cheated _that night._ She’d always been partial to his shoulders, but the uniform certainly hid a lot. His upper body was slender, not bulky at all like, say, Kondo-san’s. But everything — arms, chest, abs — was toned and trim and positively _delicious_...

“I love it when you look at me like that.”

Kagura met Okita’s eyes. His voice was low and thick and… amused? “Then,” she stepped forward, resting her hands on his hips, “you’d better hurry up and explain this perfume thing.” She dropped a kiss below his collarbone, on top of one of those solid-looking pecs. “So I can get on with enjoying myself.”

“ _Hnn._ Right.” Okita swallowed. “Here.”

Nestled against his chest, Kagura heard a faint splash and then his fingers were behind her ear. A sensual aroma touched the air, and she picked out hints of jasmine and sandalwood. “Mmm,” she hummed appreciatively.

“Do you like it?” He sounded a bit worried.

She didn’t bother to answer. She turned around and lifted her hair, exposing her neck. Okita’s breaths came shallow, and she felt oil-slicked fingers touching the nape of her neck and then between her shoulder blades.

Kagura faced him again. Hands still holding up her hair, she saw his eyes fall to her breasts. Color rose to his face, but his eyes were dark as he traced a line of oil down her sternum. She let her hair fall then, strands soaking up the scented trails along her body.

She wasn’t certain if it was only the perfume, but the air in the cabin was sensual and heady. Kagura ran her hands up his biceps to wrap her arms around his neck. Okita gasped when her breasts molded to his bare skin.

“China.” His voice was thick. “I want — can I…?”

Kagura pulled his head down for a rough kiss with one hand. With the other, she found his ass, running her hand over the tight muscle.

“Aahhh.” His groans were soft, but she’d given him her answer, and he tugged at the waistband of her loose trousers. She stepped out of them easily, shivering as Okita’s hands delicately traced the curve of her waist to her hips.

He buried his face in her hair. “Cold?” he whispered.

It was odd. Kagura knew her flesh was on fire, but she nodded against his chest.

Okita pressed a kiss against her forehead. “Just a minute.”

Kagura stood still, marveling at the incredible fortune that afforded her this scene. Okita leaned over the cabin’s bed, turning down the covers, arranging pillows. Oblivious to the fact that every move showcased a new set of muscles, highlighted by the soft glow of the ship’s emergency lights.

He turned to her, holding up a heavy blanket. “You first.”

She took a deep breath, excitement and nerves vying for first place in her gut. She crawled under the covers and lay on her side, facing him.

Okita leaned over her for just a few moments, his eyes dark, his mouth open. “God. You’ve always been beautiful, but…” He lowered his head. “I had no idea I’d ever get to see you like this.” And then his lips were on hers.

She rolled her tongue around his. He groaned and left her mouth to find her neck. And then her collarbone. Pushed back the blanket, and Kagura gasped at the cold air on her breasts. Okita lifted his head to take her in with his eyes, then lowered his mouth over her right breast.

“Ahhhhh.” Kagura was only aware of her groan halfway through the noise.

“Augh.” Okita rested his forehead on her ribs. “That is the… most amazing sound.”

“I swear, Okita,” Kagura gritted, panting, “if you don’t get your pants off this second and get into bed…”

The sight of a beautifully built man unbuckling his pants, she reflected, was an aphrodisiac second to none. Stripped to a pair of black boxers, Okita started to climb in under the covers.

“Oi!” Kagura snapped. “Naked people only in this bed if you please.”

Okita gave her a look. “I took off _your_ pants.”

She cradled her head in her arms and sighed. “Well. I suppose if you really need me to…”

And he was straddling her under the covers. “There is no question,” he kissed her forehead, then each breast in turn, “how much I need you to take off my boxers.”

Kagura couldn’t stop a laugh and ran a finger under the waistband of the offending garment.

“Mmm.” Okita sighed into her neck. “More please.”

Smirking, she skipped to the hem of his boxers and traced up a well-muscled quad, stopping just short of his groin. Okita nibbled at her shoulder. “Gah, that’s mean, China.”

“Mean? Have you been paying attention?” She cupped his cock lightly through his boxers.

“Ahhhhnnn.” Okita pressed his hips into her hand. “God. So mean.” He propped himself up on one hand, cupping a breast in the other. He passed a thumb over her nipple, and she arched her back.

“S-Sou…” Kagura reached up to tug at his boxers.

Okita’s head snapped up. “What was that?” When she shook her head, smiling, he traced around her nipple with his tongue, finally lapping over it.

Kagura yanked his boxers down to his knees with a groan. “Not—no fucking fair, O-Okita.”

“Nothing fair about this,” he teased, rolling to the side to finish removing the black shorts. He took her by the waist, pulling her on top of his chest. “I just want to hear my name. It’s your own damn fault for making a competition out of it.” He wrapped a foot around her ankle, coaxing her legs wide to straddle him.

She braced herself, guessing what was coming, but then his hand was between her legs. She buried her face in the pillow next to his head, but she had to moan, she needed to. “You could have said it earlier, when we were still dressed even.” Okita sounded entirely too pleased with himself.

Kagura could feel how easily his finger was sliding over her sensitivity. _No way am I going… going to last if he keeps… I’ve got to…_

“You are so fucking wet,” Okita whispered, “and you still can’t call me Sougo?”

She grabbed his hand, pinned it above his head. He laughed and reached down with the other, but she did the same. “If I’m so wet,” she growled, “is there a reason you’re not inside me?”

Okita raised his eyebrows, impressed. “I should have known you weren’t into subtlety.”

Kagura rubbed her sex over his cock and watched his mouth fall open. “You have time for subtlety?” she asked over his groans.

“God _dammit_ , China—” but then his erection was filling her, and he arched his back. “ _Haaaaaahhnnn_.” He wrenched his hands from her grip and found her hips, rocked her hard against him.

Kagura’s head fell forward, and she braced her hands against his chest. He was losing control, she knew, wanting a faster rhythm. She _had_ been wet, but he was large. “I... I need—” she touched one of the hands at her hips.

“Sh-show me…” he panted, and she moved his hand beneath her.

“Lower,” she breathed. “Lower. Help me…aaaaaahhhhh.”

Kagura spread herself wider, felt her thighs relax as Okita stroked her clit. She sat up, letting him stretch her as heat radiated from them both. “Harder,” she gasped. “Sougo, harder.” She wanted to savor it but was greedy for his fingers, for the seductive tingle combined with the heaviness inside her.

He was watching her, devouring her face with his eyes. His gasps were short and intense, his abs flexing with every movement.

Warmth spread from her core, to her breasts, to her feet as everything contracted. “S-Sougo…!” She collapsed on his chest, shuddering to the end.

“Kagura… kiss… kiss me…” He dragged her mouth roughly to his, biting her lip, loving her tongue as he felt her tighten around him. “I have to…” and he pushed her hips away, coming onto her thigh.

She hated moving after such intensity, preferring to let the warmth saturate every muscle. Kagura closed her eyes. Okita’s chest was the perfect thing to find yourself plastered to after a _very_ lovely orgasm.

“Are… are you okay?” Okita’s hand was in her hair.

“Mm.”

“Just mm?”

“Shh.”

He laughed, and she didn’t hate feeling his abs contract underneath her. He continued to stroke her hair, and she kept her eyes closed as he fanned it over her shoulders.

* * *

 

A knock sounded at the door, and Kagura woke with a start. Okita gripped her shoulder and put his hand lightly over her mouth.

“Sougo? Kagura-san?”

Kagura froze. _Hijikata-san!_ Okita tugged the blanket up over them both but kept still.

“Oi! We’ve been in port for an hour!” Gintoki’s voice was a mix of outrage and panic. “If he’s got her trapped somewhere—”

“Now, now, Gintoki,” Kondo sang out good-naturedly, “he’s a good boy! I’m sure they’re fine. Maybe they’re on another ship?”

“A good boy?!” Gintoki repeated incredulously. “Have you _seen_ the way he looks at her? Because _I_ have, and I know exactly—”

Kagura shot Okita a look. He shrugged innocently, and she bit back a laugh.

“Gin-san, if Sougo is stupid enough to try anything that Kagura-san doesn’t like, I’m sure she has a dozen creative ways to make him regret it.” A faint _click!_ indicated that Hijikata had lit a cigarette.

“Ha, now, Gintoki, there’s no way through this door,” Kondo said reasonably. “Let’s keep looking.”

As the voices faded, Okita wrapped his arms tightly around Kagura’s shoulders. She smiled at the rumble in his chest when he spoke. “Well, I think you showed me a dozen creative moves, but if any of them were supposed to make me regret this, you did a poor job.”

Kagura pressed a kiss into his chest, loving the depth of his sigh. She propped herself up on her elbows and smiled down at him. “So that means another dozen for next time, hm? Sougo?”

**  
** _I bet I could see that gorgeous smile even in the dark._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did it! It's finished! There'll probably be an epilogue at some point, but I wanted to finish with smut, and here it is. Woohoo!
> 
> [@codango on Tumblr](http://codango.tumblr.com/)

**Author's Note:**

> [@codango on Tumblr](http://codango.tumblr.com/)
> 
>  
> 
> [Marcella Christie](http://marcellachristie.com/) for my alter ego


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